The Hunters
by Eramaeni
Summary: AU: Eren was stolen from his home by a child molester and held captive. When he escapes, he finds he has nothing left to return to, and becomes a prostitute, which leads him to Levi, a bounty hunter. LevixEren, Non-consensual/Rape, Underage, tons of smut!
1. Prologue: In and Out

**I do not own Shingeki no Kyojin (Attack on Titan) or any of the related material used in this fiction. This is my first attempt at a LevixEren story. It will contain gratuitous, sometimes graphic sex and some disturbing situations.**

**The Hunters follows Eren Jaeger, a child who was stolen from his home by a child molester and held captive. When he escapes, he finds he has nothing left to return to, and becomes a prostitute, which leads him to Levi, a bounty hunter.**

**This chapter contains non-consensual sexual acts with a child.**

**The Hunters**

**Prologue**

In and out. In and out. In and out. For a long time, everything was in and out.

In and out. In and out.

In and out of my body.

In and out of my mind.

My mother and father had tried for years to have a child. After the first year of trying unsuccessfully, they applied for an adoption. Two years later, they were granted a little girl named Mikasa. Her father had died three months earlier, and her mother died from complications of the birth, shortly after naming her. Two days after bringing Mikasa home, my mother found out that she was six weeks along.

Growing up, Mikasa was timid, and I was a hothead. I fought with everyone about anything. She saved me when I fell down. We played with a blond boy two houses over named Armin. The three of us were thick as thieves.

When we were ten, I got into a fight with Mikasa and Armin. It was my dream to join the military. We lived near the base, and I'd watch the men coming and going. They were strong, and kind, and I admired them above anything else. But Mikasa and Armin thought it was stupid. Putting my life in harm's way...I got pissed and ran off. How could they disagree with me? I wasn't content to sit around while other people fought for justice in the world. I wanted to travel and see what was out there, like Armin. I wanted to protect the things I loved, like Mikasa. Wasn't joining up really the best idea, then? How could that be wrong? Those were the things I was thinking about when I ran off. Not that I should be careful around strangers.

I remember being too out of breath from running to scream, and too tired to fight. When I opened my eyes, I saw the doors of the van. Someone beside me was shouting, and then a face was over mine, telling me not to cry. Telling me I would be fine. When I woke up next, everything was quiet, and dark. It doesn't get more terrifying than that.

Even when he would come touch me, it wasn't so scary. I could handle feeling his grimy hands on me and his sick, heavy breathing. I could handle feeling sick all the time because all he fed me were sweets and milk. I could handle being tied up all day and night. Never knowing what time it was. The stale stench in the air. The bucket I had to shit in, and the sound of the ring he wore scraping against the metal bowl he used to wash me. I could even handle the screams of other victims throughout the house.

But I'll never get over the darkness.

Darkness is suffocating. I never knew what time it was. Never knew when the food would come, or when I'd be clean, or for how much longer I'd have to hold my piss. If those footsteps were coming to hurt me, or another kid. Even when he turned on the dim light, I was always blindfolded. Always in the dark.

Until that day.

I heard his footsteps on the stairs. I had eaten, used the toilet, and bathed all within the last hour, so I knew those footsteps were coming for me, and why. The only question was what he was in the mood for. Would he use his hands, or his mouth? Would he say dirty things, or stay silent? Would he ask me to touch him? Would he cover it in honey and tell me to lick it all off?

The first indication that something was different was that he untied my hands. My hands were never untied, even to eat. Next, he took the blindfold off, and for the first time, I saw his face. I remember how surprised I was to see that he was really handsome, and couldn't have been even forty yet. The light was pretty dim in that dingy basement, but I'll never forget that face.

The last thing he did was leave the gag in. He never left the gag in. He liked to hear me cry.

I lay on my back, looking up at him. He put a hand on my stomach and smiled softly. "You've been a really good boy, so I thought that you should be rewarded. Today, we're going to do something I save for only the older boys. Okay?" I nodded slowly, anxiety bubbling up into my chest and making my jaw tense. "Relax," he said lowly, stroking my stomach. The cotton of my shirt suddenly felt scratchy instead of soft. "You're going to do great. You're going to become a big boy today."

I whimpered.

He flipped me onto my belly and slowly removed my clothes, like he was really savoring it. He pushed my face into the mattress and my butt up into the air. I felt something cold and slick on my entrance, and then in me. It was the strangest sensation.

And then I was screaming and crying, and everything hurt. Everything hurt. Everything hurt. Everything hurt. Everything hurt.

And then, it was over.

"You were so good," he said softly, again and again, running a finger down my spine. "You were so good. Do you want a prize?"

I sniffled and tried to stop crying long enough to answer. "F-food. Real food. Not ca-cake. No more cake."

The man laughed. "Tonight, you won't eat cake."

I stayed in the terrible position for an eternity, too scared, too embarrassed, too in pain to move. I don't know how long it was, but he came back, and something smelled great. He laughed when he saw me on the bed there.

"You can't eat until you're clean." He took whatever he'd brought with him back upstairs, then reappeared with the metal bowl. The sound of his ring hitting it was hypnotic. It made a pretty sounding pitch. He cleaned me gently, and for once, the water was warm instead of cold. "There." He untied my legs. "Put these new clothes on, and I'll bring you some real food."

I knew I had to bide my time, so I put on the clothes. An olive green, long sleeve shirt, and some soft, thin, white pants.

"Sorry it took so long. I didn't want you to eat it cold." He sat on the bed with me with a smile. Always fucking smiling. But he'd made good on his promise, bringing me macaroni and cheese with fruit punch. The drink was too sugary for my taste, but I wouldn't complain. He ran his hand through my hair as I ate, asking if I liked it. I would just nod and keep eating. When I was done, I smiled, holding the fork loosely in my hand.

"You know, I have four other boys here. But you're my favorite. You don't fight me at all. You've been so good, Eren." That was the first time he'd ever said my name.

It was sickening.

I stabbed the fork into his eye and ran.

I ignored his screaming. I didn't try to help free the other boys. I just kept running until I couldn't anymore. My feet were cut up and bleeding and swollen. Tears stung my face and my throat hurt. It burned all the way up my spine from when he fucked me. I had no idea where I was or how long I was in that basement. I slept under a bridge, by the water. It was fucking freezing.

I washed up in the river, so I looked a little less like hell. Then, I would need some fucking shoes, and money. It turned out to be easier than I'd thought. I just hung around the playground until some other kid came around that I thought I could beat. It took a few tries, but I got some shoes. As for the money? I went to a different playground and cried that some bully took my bus fare and that my mom would be pissed. After avoiding the moms who wanted to give me rides, I got some cash.

Next, I went to an Internet Cafe. I was dying to know: where was I, how long had it been, and how do I get home?

Arizona.

Nine months.

What home?

I googled my parents names and the first thing to show up were their obituaries from Buttfuck-nowhere, Pennsylvania. Grisha and Carla Jaeger were killed instantly in a collision with a runaway tractor trailer. Their adopted daughter was placed back into foster care.

Fuck.

I should have probably gone to the police or something. Found help. But I was really stubborn, and I just sort of lost it. Things that made sense didn't, and things that regular people wouldn't do seemed like the right thing.

I practiced fighting by bullying other kids. I learned how to steal, cheat, con, and pickpocket my way into and out of everything. By the time I was thirteen, I was a little pro, and I didn't lose fights anymore. I didn't need Mikasa to bail me out. I didn't need _anyone_.

When I was fourteen, I figured out that my body was a valuable asset. It sure beat sleeping on playgrounds. It was easy to chat with men online and have them take me home. Once they got what they wanted, I got what I wanted: wallets, watches, jewelry, and cash. Not long after that, I realized that I didn't have to con guys out of their money. They were perfectly willing to pay for my services.

My life had become a hateful series of in and out.

All it took was a little momentum; one guy would tell his friends and bring a playmate, and soon they were showing up regularly at my shitty, hotel room door. On my fifteenth birthday, I slept with eight guys.

And four months later, I met _him._

The Corporal.


	2. The Corporal

**I own nothing!**

**This chapter contains non-consensual and graphic sex.**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter One – The Corporal**

I woke up to see the same dingy room as ever, bits of sun shining in from the jacked up blue blinds over the window. My double bed had rough, pale blue (at least, they used to be; now they were gray) bedding and sat across from a nicked up white dresser with a crappy old TV sitting on top. Next to that was a door that didn't close, leading to a bathroom where everything was maybe once white, but now was tinged yellow. To my left was a white nightstand, which held a clock that was always ten minutes too fast and a lamp that lit up just about none of the room. On the wall to my right was a bar for hanging up clothes that I never used, a mini fridge, and a microwave. At the end was the entrance.

The dark blue carpet was rough under my bare feet as I threw some breakfast from the fridge into the microwave, then showered quickly while it cooked. I never attended school, but I was determined to not end up a total fucking idiot, so I spent my time until lunch reading. When I was ready for a break, I put a sign on the door that read: "Back at 4, xoxo!"

I dropped some books off at the library, then skipped the rest of my errands and went to see if there were any guys my age willing to play laser tag, being a Saturday in the middle of summer. There were plenty of people to team up with, and I was great at the game. The guys clapped me on the back and praised me for helping them win. I exchanged phone numbers with a kid named Connie, but I knew it probably would amount to nothing. It wasn't not like I'd be any fun to be around, and we really had nothing in common other than a penchant for playing violent games.

I decided to walk all the way back to the hotel. I still had plenty of time left, and getting fat was bad for business (being addicted to junk food, as well), so I didn't mind the walk. When I got back, it was a quarter to four, and I already had a John waiting. I recognized him as a regular. He liked it when I was really sexy and into it, and he liked me to mount him. As strange as it is to impale myself on a guy's cock, I like that it puts me in control.

He was patient with me when I told him he was the first of the night. He actually liked to watch me get ready, which was fortunate because I could take my time preparing. Getting torn up by guys who can't wait sucks, and puts me out of commission. The behind-the-scenes of anal sex? Being _clean_. I used a douche as privately as I could, seeing as the door didn't actually close, and then let him watch me finger myself. I got really good at acting like I enjoyed sex, because I never really did, but it's boring for them to sleep with a dead fish.

The next guy came around five. He had a latex fetish, and usually asked me to wear weird stuff and finger him with gloves on.

The next guy, I _hate_. He liked to be called Daddy, and wanted me to be really nervous and reluctant. But the worst part was that he liked to fuck me ass up, with his hand gripping my hair, pushing my face into the mattress. That guy is the worst. As he left, two more walked in at the same time.

"Hey," I said breathlessly, completely naked and covered in sweat, but smiling, still trying to be seductive. My face was flushed and I had my back straightened out, but I was still on my knees with my hair messier than usual, which is saying something. "I just need a minute to clean up."

One guy stood by the door. He was older, and something about him was off...and disturbingly familiar.

The other was admittedly handsome, and flashed me a smile as he approached the bed, putting his hand on the small of my back. "You don't have to do all that. I'll take you as you are." He pushed me onto my back.

"Did you want to go together?" I asked nervously as he pulled me by my ankles so that my legs hung off the side of the bed. I'd never had more than one at a time before.

"No, he just wants to watch." I nodded, relieved as he stood over me and unzipped his pants.

I just sort of stared at the ceiling the entire time, trying not to think about any of it.

* * *

"I'm leaving you some extra for letting my friend watch," he said as he zipped up.

"Thanks," I forced myself to say. I felt like throwing up, and I was _really_ tired.

I heard the door open, and then he said: "Hey, Jaeger. Looks like you've got someone waiting on you."

I sat up to see who was outside the door. This guy looked up and I saw his eyes widen the slightest in surprise before he stared right back at me with a cold, apathetic look. He was leaning against the hood of a black cargo van with the cigarette in his left hand held up to his mouth and his right arm held horizontally across his abdomen. He had black hair and wore a green motorcycle jacket, tight black pants with straps and black combat boots. I smiled weakly and motioned for him to come in. He took another drag from his cigarette before flicking it away and entering, shutting the door softly behind him. He never brought his gaze away from me, and I felt my face heat up.

"What can I do for you tonight?" I asked, turning on the charms as best I could.

"Take a shower," he replied flatly. "I don't like leftovers, and you're filthy."

"O-okay, sure," I said, taken aback. Every second of the day I hated myself, feeling sick and dirty and used. I didn't like hearing someone else reminding me. I stole a glance at the clock first. It said nine. He stood in the vestibule of the bathroom as I turned on the water and got in. "So, what should I call you?" The water was freezing and it hurt.

"Corporal."

My heart skipped a beat. I smiled reminiscently, not that he would have known. I still had a soft spot for that sort of thing.

"Oh, so you're a military man?"

"Not quite." It was clear that he wasn't a talker, and things got silent for a while after that.

"What do you know about the two who were just here?" he asked abruptly while I was cleaning the inside of myself (thoroughly).

"Nothing, really. First time they've been here. Didn't give me names. The one wanted to fuck me while the older one watched." I paused, a little disturbed at how easily things like that came out of my mouth. "That's about all there is to it."

"Hm."

Things were silent again and I exited the shower. I noticed that he averted his eyes as I passed him.

I started to dress quickly. I was freezing and he didn't seem to want to look at me. "So, I take it you were following them?"

He waited a second as if debating how to answer. "Yes." Another second went by. "I didn't expect to be lead to a prostitute. It's not in his M.O., so to speak."

"...Right. So, I guess you won't be needing my services, then?" I toweled off my hair and tossed it toward the bathroom floor.

He looked me right in the eyes and said simply, "I didn't say that." My eyes widened. He stepped forward to put a hand on my hip and another on my cheek. "I thought about it, and you're just too cute to pass up." I blushed the slightest.

"Well, then," I said lowly, putting my hand on his belt buckle, "why don't you let me show you what I can do?"

Both of his hands came to my hips and he pushed me a back a little. I noticed that he was short, then.

"I want you to stop pretending that you really like this. It's okay if you feel nervous, or insecure. I want you to tell me what you like and what you don't. I want you to enjoy it, and I _don't_ want you to fake it."

I nodded slowly. "Yes, Corporal." I wasn't really sure what to think.

He put his hands on my face and kissed me firmly. He licked at my lips and my mouth opened without me telling it to. Kissing...we were kissing. I can't remember anyone kissing me before him, and if they did, it wasn't like this. I playfully slid my tongue against his, trying not to look like a total beginner, and my hands moved from his belt, up his chest to his shoulders. He pulled us closer together and deepened the kiss, his hot tongue tracing along every little bit of my mouth. His eyes were half-lidded when we separated, and he pushed me toward the bed. I felt it hit the back of my knees and let myself fall backward. It felt softer than usual.

He straddled my hips, hovering above me, just looking down and licking his lips as if he were deciding what to do with me. Then, he came down for another kiss. One hand laced its fingers with mine, up next to my right ear, and the other snaked its way under my t-shirt to play with my nipples. My free hand went to his shoulder, and I was starting to feel pretty good. From what I felt when he ground his hips against mine, so was he.

"Corporal," I breathed as he rose again, pushing me back further onto the bed so that we both lay comfortably. I purred at the feeling of his hips against mine a few more times and he pushed my shirt up to my collarbone. _Foreplay, _I thought as his lips enclosed around one of my nipples. _This is foreplay_. Yet another experience I didn't get to have. I would give up the right to ever be penetrated again if it meant I got to have lots of foreplay.

For the first time in my life, I was enjoying something sexual; it was more than just the physiological response, and sometimes I didn't even get that.

We kissed more for a time while he switched between stroking my stomach and teasing my nipples, and I started to get impatient. I brought my hips up to meet his and we moaned together. I felt that he was even harder than me, even though I was the one on the receiving end of the ministrations. Didn't he want more, too? When he didn't go for it, I ground my body against his again.

He sat up and looked at me with that blank face. "Didn't I say that you should tell me what you want?"

Was that what he was waiting for?

"I want more," I said lowly, looking away.

"More what," he breathed hotly into my ear.

"I-I want you to fuck me."

He just looked at me for a second, his face a hair's width away. It made me blush again, and he kissed and sucked at my neck. It felt really great, and my hips bucked up involuntarily. Involuntarily? That never happens. I'm always faking it. Every sound, every touch, every little bit of sex is planned and timed out.

But this guy gives me a hickey, and suddenly I can't control my own body.

His hands worked on sliding my pants down, then he stood up and started to undress himself. I kicked my pants all the way off, then reached over to grab lube and a condom from the nightstand. I sat up in the middle of the bed and realized that my shirt was still smushed up around my collarbone, so I pulled that the rest of the way off too. The Corporal knelt in front of me, entirely bare, his dick standing proudly against his stomach. It was pretty sizeable, and all of a sudden I felt nervous.

"My rule is that I put it on for you." I swallowed hard and my throat felt dry as I tore open the wrapper. "That way I know that it's on right." He nodded, and I took him into my hand, stroking him a few times before putting it on him.

"Are you nervous?" I detected the slight emotion in his voice.

"Of course not," I lied, smiling. My heart was pounding and my face was burning, so I was probably bright red. "I've done this a million times." I lay back and he put his hands on my knees, pushing my legs apart and up.

"You've never done it with _me._" I shuddered, and swear on my life that he smirked for a second. He took the lube and squeezed some onto his fingers, then slipped two of them into me at the same time. It had been sweltering all day, so thankfully the lube was a little warm. I sighed contentedly at the feeling. He had long, slender, dexterous fingers, and although I didn't really need to be stretched (I felt a pang of embarrassment at being a whore), he went slowly and rubbed every little bit, slicking up my silky passage. I pushed my hips back against his fingers, showing him that I was ready for more. He put in the third and continued taking his time sliding them in and out. I started to get annoyed. I was definitely stretched enough for him to fit. I gripped the sheets and bucked my hips to feel more, and started to touch my dick to relieve the strain. He just kept his tortuously slow pace, leaving me panting and mewling. I saw the devilish glint in his eye, although the rest of his expression remained unchanged, and knew that he was just teasing me. He wanted me to want it. He wanted me to beg.

Eren Jaeger begs for no one.

Or so I thought.

After another minute of gyrating my hips in an attempt to get what my body was asking for, I caved in. "Corporal," I whined, "what are you waiting for?"

He chuckled and pulled his fingers out, then put his hands on my thighs and his tip to my rim. "I promise to make you scream." His voice was husky, and he pushed himself in all the way up to his balls in one swift motion. I groaned gratefully in relief. The need I felt was overwhelming, and I thought that I would cry, or explode, or just die. Maybe all three at the same time.

He fit so well in me. I thought I would be too loose, but I felt a pleasurable stretch. He waited for me, and I sighed again, getting used to it. I nodded, and he started to thrust.

Like his teasing foreplay, the Corporal's approach to intercourse was methodical, but instead of meaning to make me intensely desire him, he wanted me to intensely orgasm. He knew exactly where to press, how hard, what pace made me the most wanton (if it was even possible to increase that feeling in me). He started with long, slow thrusts, pulling out until his tip was just barely still inside and pushing back in as far as my body would allow, depending on how relaxed I was able to keep my muscles.

I moaned, "C-corporal," and he made his body flush with mine.

"Does it feel good?" His thrusts got harder and he gripped my hips painfully tightly.

"Uh-huh," I gasped, digging my nails into his back. A scream tore from my throat as he hit my sweet spot and my face flushed again. I bit my lip to try and stifle the gross noises I was making.

"Hey," he grunted, "don't do that. If you silence yourself, I'll have to try harder."

"Ah. Aahh." He was still pushing pretty hard, but stopping to only just graze my prostate a little.

"You see," he panted, his pace quickening and movement becoming more shallow, " I always keep my promises. And I promised to make you scream." He thrust in deep and hard, slamming into my prostate. I tasted blood when the scream ripped out of my body, like it bubbled up from down deep and forced itself out too quickly.

"Corporal!"

"Did you like that?"

I started to feel overwhelmed again, choked up by hormones and emotion, holding back tears. I wasn't being professional at all.

"Yes! Don't...don't stop!"

He didn't let up, and I was embarrassed at all the noise I was making, but it seemed like he liked the feedback. Soon, I couldn't take it anymore and I came, moaning long and low, stroking myself. His nails dug painfully into my hips, drawing blood as my body tensed around him. I scarcely heard him breathe my name.

"Jaeger..." I knew he was finishing, riding out his orgasm. Then he slipped out, and I winced at the little wet 'pop' sound it made. He didn't waste any time, standing up and turning away to take the condom off.

I sat up gingerly, already feeling pretty sore. "What if I see these guys again?" I was still out of breath.

"I lost the trail by staying here, but it I would have blown it then, since he noticed me." I think he said it more to himself than to me. "I'd like it if you'd let me know." His voice was back to its monotone. How does anyone regain their composure that quickly after sex that good? Unless...

"I'll leave you my number for you," he added on his way to the bathroom.

Did he like it as much as I had?

"Okay." I got up slowly.

"Could I shower here?"

"Of course. If you don't mind that the hot water doesn't work."

He shrugged, and I heard the water start up. I gathered up his clothing, folded it up, and left it on the edge of the sink for him. When I turned back to the bed, I noticed that instead of the scratchy blue covers, there was a nice, albeit disheveled, white blanket spread out across the top.

I guess he didn't want to touch the same place as all those other guys. I remembered his comment about leftovers and it made my heart hurt. I was so disgusting.

I felt like I'd just lost my virginity to the Corporal. Sex with him opened my body up to a whole new world of physical pleasure and made me realize that sex was strongly emotional (or at least had the capacity to be), and that whatever I was doing before wasn't sex at all. I'd never been proud of what I did, but I'd never felt so ashamed before.

It was going to be so much harder to just sleep around with guys.

I folded up the blanket and hugged it to my chest, sitting on the bed. It smelled like him, and it shocked me that I could already recognize that scent.

"Jaeger." He stood in the doorway of the bathroom in his gray shirt and black pants. "What do I owe you?"

"Nothing. Don't worry about it." I nuzzled into the blanket and the rest of my dialogue was muffled. "This one is on me."

His face tilted down the slightest bit. "Are you sure?"

"Yes." I didn't want to cheapen the way I'd felt with money. I wanted to hold on to the belief that I was more than just a tool for getting off. I wanted the fact that this body was _me_ to matter.

He huffed lightly with his arms crossed, taking a couple steps forward. "Why don't you keep that blanket?"

"Huh? Really?" I felt awkward for snuggling it.

"I don't want it." He pulled his green jacket back on. "It's gross."

"Oh. Right." My shoulders slumped a little. But what had I been expecting? Why was I acting like some stupid schoolgirl?

"You're really not bothered, are you? Sitting there naked in front of me."

I laughed nervously. "I guess I don't have much shame left." I started pulling on clothes; whatever I had strewn about during the day. It honestly didn't occur to me that I was still naked.

"Hm." We stood there awkwardly for a moment.

"So, uh..."

"My phone number."

"Right." I looked around for a moment, but my phone really could have been anywhere. "Uh..."

He rolled his eyes. "Pen and paper?" The impatience in his voice was apparent.

"Here." I grabbed the pad and pen from the nightstand and handed them to him. He started to write, then I watched him scribble, then he gave the pen a death glare and chucked it into the trash bin with more grace than a shitty pen probably deserved.

"I've got one in the van." He left the door open as he headed out, which I took as an invitation to follow him, although for many reasons I shouldn't have. I shivered violently, my bare feet padding out onto the pavement. One thing I never got used to about living in the desert was the sweltering heat during the day and the bitter cold at night. No middle ground.

He opened the driver's side door and produced a pen. I always think of the dumbest things, but who is that organized? I would have been rummaging around like an idiot.

"Here." I took the pad from him. "The pen too." His facial expression tacked the word 'idiot' onto that statement.

"Well, thanks." My toes were going to freeze off. "I'll let you know if I find anything out."

"Jaeger...look. Don't bother me with anything unnecessary." His eyes flicked away for a second. "But if you get into trouble, you can call me."

I smiled. "Thanks, Corporal."

He reached into his right front pocket. "Whatever." He frowned. "Keys."

"Huh?"

"My keys. Maybe they fell out in your room."

"How did you open the car?"

He rolled his eyes. "I never locked it. But I need them to drive."

"I'll go check."

I gagged when I walked back into the room. It reeked of sweat and musk and dick, but I didn't notice until I'd breathed some fresh air. The Corporal managed to keep his composure but I heard the strain in his voice when he suggested opening a window.

"Yup. Yeah. On it." I got right to it and he checked for his keys around the room. I couldn't believe how gross it was. I wished the window was bigger, so it would carry more air out.

"Found them."

"Okay. Drive safe." I'm a fucking idiot.

"Hm."

I watched him drive away. I cried in the shower. And I snuggled his blanket for the entire night.

**Just in case you're randomly interested, I finished writing the epilogue to this story the other day, and I was crying the whole time. This story is going to be fucking awesome.**


	3. Friends

**For anyone who actually remembers Ian from the series, I just kind of picked his name out of a hat. I wanted to use a character's name from the series, but it doesn't necessarily actually have to be him. If you want to think of him as that guy, be my guest, or if you have a different idea of what he looks like, then run with that. In my mind, he doesn't look like Ian, so...**

**And if you don't remember Ian, then just ignore that. Haha.**

**I don't own Attack on Titan.**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter Two - ****Friends**

I was half-asleep when I heard my phone go off around seven-thirty in the morning. It had been three days since the Corporal came around (and the guy he was looking for), and every day since had been excruciatingly boring and the same. I checked the text message:

**Hey, Eren! It's Connie. **

Morning.

**Oh, did I wake you? Sry. Some friends and I are going to Big Surf. Just spend the day there. Wanna come?**

I don't drive or anything.

**We'll pick you up. Don't worry.**

Who is going? I don't know anyone.

**It'll be fine. Make some friends.**

How long?

**Stop making excuses. Meet us at Black Bear Diner in half an hour? It's around the laser tag place. If you don't show up in an hour, we'll leave w/o you!**

I waited a couple minutes to decide. My body kind of acted on its own, rolling (quite literally) out of bed, pulling on beige tank top with brown and olive green graphics, a pair of black shorts that I had sort of grown too tall for, but I fuck guys, so what the hell, and off-white sandals. On one wrist I wore a black waterproof watch with some rubber wristbands, and on the other, some of those bracelets that you tie on (and subsequently never take off because scissors are too much effort). I looked at myself in the mirror and didn't even try to tame my hair, but I did worry about all the marks on my body. They were easy enough to hide if I kept my shirt on, and I wore a dog collar or a choker on normal days, but if we were wearing bathing suits...I just tied on a braided choker on and hoped for the best. Maybe no one would say anything. Only two little ones remained in plain sight.

I filled a soft white knapsack with a sweatshirt for the night, a pair of sunglasses, my keys, a wad of cash, and my phone. I'd never been to a water park (or water anything, really), so I didn't exactly own things for that, but I figured I'd just let them know I had to pick stuff up first.

When I felt ready, I left a note on the door: "Come back tomorrow. Xoxo."

* * *

"Hey, Eren!" Connie smiled widely at me, waving his arm like a lunatic so I could see where they were sitting. I didn't actually get there until forty-five minutes later, but it didn't seem to matter. There were three other people in the booth, and I didn't think I'd fit, but I walked over to them.

"Hi," I said, trying to smile in a friendly way. Making friends had always been tough for me, and I didn't know how to be anything except angry or sexy. I saw his eyes flicker to the spot on my neck where the hickeys were, but he didn't mention it.

"Sit down, sit!" He pushed the girl next to him in, scooting over for me. I kicked my knapsack under the table and felt kind of better looking at them. I wasn't sure how to dress, but apparently I'd gotten it right. "This is Sasha," the girl seated next to him smiled, "Thomas," a blond boy across from her who nodded with a smile, "and Annie." She just stared back at me blankly.

_Like the Corporal_, I thought absently. "Hey, I'm Eren."

"Eren, how old are you?" Sasha asked immediately.

"Fifteen." I fidgeted nervously.

"I haven't seen you around ever," Thomas interjected. "Do you go to Gilbert?"

I shook my head. "I'm home-schooled."

"Whoa! What's that like? If you don't mind me asking." Sasha looked genuinely interested, and it frightened me. I didn't want to lie to them, but I sure as hell was keeping the entire truth to myself.

"Uh, it's not bad."

"Hey, Sasha, you can ask him dumb stuff later. Let's get some breakfast first," Connie said laughing.

"Who are you calling stupid, Connie," she replied with a smile.

I wondered if I'd made the right choice, meeting these people.

Connie, Sasha, and Thomas talked animatedly over the menus while I tried to look at my own and forget about the fact that Annie's blatant staring was boring holes into my head. My face turned a little pink.

"Annie, what are you getting?" I asked in an attempt to get her do anything else in the world but just look at me like that. It was unnerving.

"Just scrambled eggs and toast, I think."

I nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

"I'm getting the Hunter's Breakfast," Sasha exclaimed with a gleam in her eye. "It comes with pancakes, potatoes, eggs, Canadian bacon, sausage, regular bacon, and shredded beef."

I winced. "That's...a lot of food."

"Don't worry, she can handle it. Maybe the table can't," Thomas joked, "but Sasha can pack it away."

I was really used to eating barely anything beside microwave meals and fast food. "I can't wait to see that happen," I said genuinely.

"Just you wait!"

After we'd ordered, I mentioned that I didn't own a swimsuit.

"Well, we can stop over at the Wal-Mart on the way. What do you do when you go to the pool, if you don't have a suit?"

"I've never gone to a pool. Or a beach."

Connie looked really surprised. "Never? But it's Arizona. I go swimming all the time."

"Don't get too excited. It's not the ocean," Annie commented dryly.

"It will be plenty of fun, Eren. Do you know how to swim at all?" Sasha seemed to find everything exciting.

"Is there a difference between swimming and not-drowning?"

"Not for our purposes," Thomas laughed.

"Then, yes."

The food came, and Annie and I ate while listening to Sasha try and tell us stories with her mouth full of meat and to Thomas and Connie laugh and chat. We took our time, since the park didn't actually open until ten, and I didn't mind savoring the moment. Real food. Carefree teenagers. It was like the shows I watched on television, but it didn't feel like my life. Annie had stopped blatantly staring, but every once in a while I managed to still catch her eye.

"All right, guys. Time to pay up," Connie said.

"Actually, I'd like to take care of this for everyone."

"Huh? Eren, you don't have to do that."

"I...I want to." Maybe buying friends was the best I could do.

Sasha blushed. "No way! Please, let me pay for myself, Eren!"

I grimaced. "I said it's fine, so it's fine. Just let me do it."

"T-thank you very much," she said, backing off. I guess she thought it would be more disrespectful to fight about it.

"Thanks, man," Connie grinned.

"Yeah, thanks!" Thomas gave me a thumbs up.

Annie even nodded at me in approval.

* * *

"All right!" Connie led us over to his car. "I've got the station wagon today, so you three in the back should get comfy. Now who is—"

"Shotgun," Annie said flatly.

I sat in the middle between Sasha and Thomas, which is never fun, but I didn't complain. "I hope you're not too uncomfortable, Eren," she said.

"It's fine. You know, you don't have to be so polite. Just do whatever makes you feel normal."

She blushed a little. "Thanks, Eren. Hey, why don't I be the one to help you pick things out for the trip?"

"If that's what you want."

"Of course!"

I smiled as nicely as I could, and Connie looked over at me. "Don't get too friendly there, Eren. I'm staking a claim over Sasha!" I could tell he was joking, but I still felt awkward.

"I didn't mean to...I'm sorry."

He grinned again. "I'm just teasing you. It's hard not to, when you look cute in those tiny shorts."

My first instinct was to get embarrassed, but instead I used it to my advantage. "I can look even cuter without them," I smiled mischievously.

Connie turned a little pink, and laughed. "Look at that. Eren makes jokes!"

Sasha asked me tons of questions. What kind of swimsuit did I like? Something plain. Did I want to get a tan, or did I want strong sun protection? Whatever was fine. I just kind of let her do what she wanted and forked over the cash, because I didn't really care, and it was fun to watch her get really animated, especially over food. As soon as we pulled into the parking lot of the park, she was on again about food.

"Guys, let's take a snack break."

"Sasha, we haven't gotten inside the park yet. And we ate at eight. That's two hours ago."

"Two hours and fifteen minutes. Thomas, please explain to Connie why it's important that we eat snacks right now."

"Sasha, let's go in and rent lockers and change first. Then we can do all of that."

I changed into the black and white swim trunks Sasha had picked out and realized that I didn't get an extra shirt. I really didn't want to take it off, so I accepted the fact that I would just be wet all day.

"You girls look nice," I said when I met them at the lockers. Sasha wore a plain red bikini and Annie was wearing a two piece suit that was light blue with white polka dots and pink ribbon. I was surprised at how feminine it was, and also thought that it really suited her.

"Thanks," they said at the same time, Sasha's voice bright and Annie's flat.

"Eh? Eren, aren't you going to take that tank top off? It'll be pretty uncomfortable on the slides. Sometimes they make you take it off anyway," Connie said when I closed my locker.

"Uh...do you really think it's a good idea?"

"You don't have to be embarrassed. We're all just in our suits. We won't make fun of you or anything."

I looked at Thomas and Connie, then to other guys I saw milling around the park. It was true that I was the only weirdo running around in the hot sun with a shirt still on. "Okay." I hesitated for a moment, then just pulled it off, like ripping off a Band-Aid.

I saw each one of their eyes widen at the sight of my marked up body, and I tensed up.

Thomas chuckled nervously, "Hey, Eren...your girlfriend is kind of crazy, right?" Connie elbowed him in the stomach.

"Yeah," I laughed back, blushing. "So, uh...what should we do first?"

I actually had fun. We went on slides and in the wave pool, stopped for lunch, and then rode everything all over again. Around five we decided to call it quits and changed back into our clothing. Annie and I were the first ones ready to leave.

"Eren."

"Annie," I smiled.

"I know your secret."

That startled me. No wonder she had been staring. "W-what do you mean?"

She didn't answer. Instead, Connie and Thomas showed up, closely followed by Sasha. "Is everyone ready to go?"

We ended up back at the shopping center where the Wal-Mart was, to eat dinner and just walk around. I avoided Annie and let everyone else do the talking. I was feeling too apprehensive to add anything to the conversation.

"Eren, does that sound good?"

"Huh?"

"Ice cream."

"Um, yeah. You guys can get some. I don't like sweets."

We sat at a table for a while and I started to warm up again. Annie had stopped staring me down, and Sasha had toned down the personal questions, so I was more relaxed. Of course, the universe wasn't okay with that. Connie was suggesting we see a movie at the theater next door when it happened..

"Jaeger?"

Now, there's a big problem with getting called Jaeger. If you're a customer, you don't get to know my first name. And if you're not a customer, you only get to know my first name. So getting called Jaeger in front of a group of people who called me Eren was awful. I froze.

"It really is you," he said, putting a hand on my shoulder, and I turned around, dreading who I would see. "I stopped by to see you earlier, but you weren't home." It was the guy. The young one who the Corporal had asked me to keep an eye out for. He was smiling that pretty, evil smile, and I knew what he was thinking.

"Uh, hey." I swallowed hard, and my friends were starting to notice something off.

"Are these your friends?" His hand started to creep from my shoulder down my back.

"Y-yeah. Look, um, I'm sorry I wasn't in earlier." I really just wanted him to go, and sat up a little straighter. He took his hand off of my back. "Could we catch up tomorrow?"

"I was hoping you'd be in tonight, actually," he said, and his voice was lower in pitch, and he ran his hand through my hair. I turned bright red.

"Uh, yeah. Right. Could you just give me a minute?"

He nodded and winked at me. "Sure. It was nice meeting you guys. Take good care of him." He walked off enough to give us a little privacy, but he watched me like a hawk.

"Eren? Who is that creep? Are you all right?" Thomas looked really concerned. I noticed that Sasha was shocked, Connie looked like he was ready to defend my honor, and Annie just continued to spoon tiny bits of ice cream into her stupid mouth like this was some kind of show.

I cleared my throat. "Yeah, I'm fine. He's just this guy I know."

"You want us to stick with you? You can stay over at my house," Connie added.

"Um...no, thanks. Really. It's cool. So, uh...thanks for today, but I've got to go. I'll take a rain check on that movie?" I stood up nervously and almost forgot my knapsack. "S-see you guys."

I'm sure they saw when the guy squeezed my ass on the way out of the shopping center, and I decided that I'd never hang out with them again. Friends just weren't a thing I could have.

He drove a red Dodge Charger with the license plate 035—

"Jaeger." He was holding the passenger side door open for me like a gentleman.

"Thanks," I smiled, getting into the car. Well, it was only a little bit of information, but at least I had something to give to the Corporal. I had the feeling that he wasn't planning on taking me back to my little hotel room. As the guy got in and started the car, I pulled my phone out to text him, but the guy put a hand on mine.

"I think you're on my time, now. Can't that person wait?"

I laughed nervously. "Sorry. I was just telling my friends not to worry about me getting home tonight."

"Didn't you just tell them?" His voice was sweet and murderous. "Why don't I hold onto that for you?"

I bit my lip. "If you think that's really necessary..."

He took it from my hands. "I know how teenagers get with texting. Don't worry. It'll be safe with me."

I nodded. "By the way, I don't think you told me your name."

"Hah. I'm sorry. That was rude, right? You can call me Ian."

"Ian...I like that."

"Good." He grabbed my knee instead of the gear shift. "I think you're going to have a nice time, tonight."

"Oh?" I picked up his hand and put it back on the stick. "But, Ian, my job is to make sure _you_ are having fun."

"Don't worry. I know I'm going to enjoy myself either way."

That sounded fucking menacing.

_Corporal, save me! _I started to get seriously scared. At least in my hotel room, they'd just do it and leave. I didn't like unknowns, and we weren't heading the direction back to my place. I tried really hard to pay attention to where we were going, but he was speeding a little. The freeway. Val Vista. Church to the left. We went straight for a long time; seven streets passed on the right. Then we turned right. Right. Skip a street, turn right. We ended up in a cul-de-sac, so I assumed that was the end of the journey.

"Whoa. These are some serious houses," I said absentmindedly. They were huge, pretty houses with manicured gardens, like out of magazines.

He chuckled. "Like it? It's pretty nice on the inside, too."

I blushed. It was hard not to be impressed, but I couldn't afford to let my guard down. "I'm jealous."

"Wait until you see my bed."

I swallowed hard. "Y-yeah."

He wasn't kidding when he said it would be nice inside. Every single room was a magazine cover. I wondered if he even lived in the house. Nothing should be that pretty. It wasn't pristine—it looked like people lived there, but like it was staged. Not natural.

"This way." He took my hand and led me back through the house and upstairs. His room had a nice view of the patio, backyard, and pool, and I went to it straight away.

"Wow," I breathed, pressed against the glass like a kid outside of a toy store. "Imagine the great soccer games you could play there."

"I was thinking of a different game," he whispered into my ear, his hands on my hips.

I put my hands over his. "I like games," I said, leaning into his touch. Maybe if I acted really well, he'd be satisfied and take me home.

"Why don't you go clean up in the bathroom?" He turned me around and pointed out the door. "I have to get a few things together. Just take a shower and relax."

I nodded with a coy smile, heading over to the bathroom.

"And don't bother getting dressed. Just come out when you're ready. Use whatever you'd like."

The bathroom was bigger than my entire fucking hotel room. It was like walking onto a spaceship. There were modern fixtures and crap everywhere, and I didn't know what most of it was, unless I'd seen it on television (and daytime TV sucks, so I watch a lot of QVC). There was a tub with jets and stuff, and one of those awesome showers that makes it feel like it's raining, with lights and music and a bunch of unnecessary junk. I turned the hot water on (and it was actually hot!) and started to strip. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad, spending the night with him, if it meant I got to hang out here.

Probably not. I rummaged around the cabinets and found a rubber bulb, which isn't made for what I was planning on using it for, but would do the trick.

The water felt amazing, and the soap smelled awesome, and I started to feel pretty good and relaxed. Even cleaning inside myself didn't make me feel as awkward as usual.

I stepped out and shivered a bit, then continued into the bedroom when I didn't notice any towels around.

"Ian, I'm...ready. Uh. What's all this?" I held my arms across my chest, feeling cold outside of the hot shower, and watched him set some scary looking stuff down on a metal tray covered with a sheet of this blue fabric paper thing. Like I'd seen on hospital shows. Everything I know is from TV and books, but they usually weren't that wrong.

Ian smiled at me. His shirt was off, and he was wearing latex gloves. "All ready? Come, lie on the bed."

The bed was really big, with plush beige bedding that sucked me in as soon as I got on it. It was so comfortable I almost lost myself.

"Ian, what are you interested in tonight?"

"Heh. I couldn't stop thinking about you. About how pretty you'd look here."

My throat and mouth felt dry. "Aren't we going to have sex?"

He shrugged. "Let's not rush it. I wanted to do something nice for you." He came over and I noticed that in his hands he held chains. Handcuffs. "I'm going to need you to relax, and hold still, though."

"Are the handcuffs really necessary?" Getting tied up was one of my worst fears.

"It's okay. If you're good, we can take them off."

"What if I promise?"

"I just can't take your word for it. But it won't be long." I let him chain me to the bed by my wrists, and then he straddled me. "Now, close your eyes." Reluctantly, I followed that order too. "Open your mouth."

Oh, fuck. But it wasn't what I thought it was. He reached in and pulled my tongue out, then held it there. It was uncomfortable, but not painful. And really strange, but whatever got him off was fine with me. Until it started to hurt like a motherfucker.

I grunted and my eyes flew open. "Ah-ah-ah! If you move too much, Jaeger, you'll hurt yourself." Tears welled up in my eyes, but I stopped trying to buck him off. I saw the metal tray sitting next to him on the bed, and could make out what was on it. Needles, and plain, silver jewelry, among some other things. He...he was piercing me. What kind of sick fuck does that?

"I'm trained, and I know what I'm doing, if that's what you're wondering." He smiled sadistically. "Once the pain of the piercing is over, you'll be fine. So keep calm." He put the barbell through my tongue and let me put it back in my mouth. "How does it feel?"

I rubbed my tongue around a little. Painful, and foreign. But not terrible.

"Ith all right."

He laughed. "Cold things will keep the swelling down. Ice, popsicles, you know. The lisp will go away."

I nodded. "All done?"

"Not quite."

* * *

"Aah. Hah, ah. I-Ian. Ian..." He had three fingers in me, stretching and rubbing and making me blush. I gripped the sheets, my mouth hung open, my eyes were closed.

"Do you like it, Jaeger?"

"Uh-huh." It wasn't hard to lie. It felt good, physically to my body. But I hated that he was the one doing it.

"Are you ready for more?"

"Y-yeth." Damn lisp. My tongue felt big and heavy in my mouth.

"I won't give it to you," he said, suddenly stopping and leaving me like that. "I don't want you to get too spoiled."

Bastard, motherfucking bastard.

* * *

I was tired, and thirsty, and sleepy. I'd been with Ian for almost four hours, and there was no end in sight. He would come into the room, do something really crazy, and then leave, like nothing had happened. He'd done this a bunch of times, and every single time it hurt. The last time he branded me, _branded me like I was his prized cow_ and then cuffed my hands in front of me and left me on the bed. I don't know where he went, but I knew I didn't have much time. I needed to contact the Corporal. Desperately.

I rolled off the bed and landed on my ass, which earned some tears of pain, and wriggled over to where his pants were discarded on the floor. My phone was still in the front pocket, and after some careful maneuvering, I was able to pull it out. I could send him a text, but time was of the essence. I'd rather get caught chatting on the phone than not get the message across at all.

"Jaeger?"

"Corporal!" I was so happy, I could have cried. I choked up a little bit. Ian didn't seem to be interested in letting me go anytime soon, and I didn't think my psyche could take any more. "He...he came to see me again. Ian."

"Ian? I'll be right there."

"No—wait! I'm not there. He took me somewhere…Corporal..." It suddenly hit me that I still didn't know Ian's plans for me. All I could think of was my stifling nine month captivity five years ago, and it was enough to paralyze me with fear. I could never go back to that, even if this house was nicer. The thought of being without freedom was enough to make me want to drown myself in the bathtub.

"Jaeger, I can't really hear you." He sounded really impatient, but I couldn't bring myself to say anything. "Why are you whispering? And why do you have a fucking lisp? You brat. Answer. Now."

I could barely choke the word out. "Corporal." I didn't mean to cry, but I couldn't contain the fear.

His voice softened. "Are you hurt?" Yes, in more ways than one, and I need you to save me.

"I—I'm fine. Fine. Uh...we left from Mesa Grand." I tried to be clear, but my mind was falling apart, and I was crying, and my damn tongue—and my backside started to throb in pain, and I couldn't concentrate, and I wanted him to hear me, but I couldn't speak too loudly. I sobbed. "The shopping center. Superstition and Val Vista...ugh. That's all I remember."

I heard the rustling of paper. "Are these directions?" A pause. "Damn it, Jaeger. Isn't there anything else you remember?"

I whimpered. "I'm trying." I closed my eyes and concentrated. "A cul-de-sac. The house is on a cul-de-sac."

He huffed, "That fucking doesn't help if I can't get there."

"Argh...uh," I tried to keep from hyperventilating, tried to force my brain to remember. "Red Charger. License plate...035 something. 045 something? I don't remember."

"Jaeger..." He sighed heavily.

"Okay, look. Uh...ugh. Um...church. Church! There's a church on the left. Then...then...six, seven, eight. Seven or eight streets to the right. Turn right. Turn right. Skip one. Turn right. The car."

"Is that all?"

"I...I can't...I can't remember." My chest felt tight.

"I...I guess that will do. Thanks."

"C-corporal?" I skipped a beat. "Hurry."

He hung up and I sighed in relief, only a little. He was going to try to get me. Things weren't hopeless.

"Eren, what are you doing?" I rolled over to see the source of the female voice. "You know, I'm allowed to hurt you if you do stupid things."

My eyes widened. "Annie?"


	4. Betrayal

**I don't own Attack on Titan, unfortunately, and obviously. It would be very different.**

**I apologize for the absurd number of typos in Chapter 1. I don't think my beta read that one. Perhaps not with a fine-toothed comb. Maybe I should beta my beta.**

**Uh...this chapter includes a party. The band I'm thinking of when I mention the music is Psyclon Nine. But it's really up to you. If you're going to look them up, I recommend "Harlot," "As You Sleep," "Rusted," or "INRI." Or you know, Katy Perry or whatever the fuck you like.**

**This chapter includes rape and humiliation and junk like that. If that sort of thing is too bothersome for you. But I tried not to be too graphic.**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter Three**

**Betrayal**

"Annie..." I was too stunned to register my embarrassment at being naked and handcuffed in front of her. "What are you doing here?"

"He's my brother. It's not that I don't care for you, but he had my loyalty."

"So...you knew. The whole time."

"I'm sorry" was what her mouth said, but her face remained indifferent.

"Yeah." I tried and failed to push myself up to my knees.

"Don't hurt yourself, Eren." She came over and pulled me up. I blushed like mad, and she made an effort not to stare. "I'm...just doing what I have to."

"I know." But that didn't mean I had to like it.

"He's possessive. He liked you that once time, and now he doesn't want to let you go. You're all he talks about. So, when I met you earlier...it was a shock." As she talked, she put a leash on my collar. That's pretty fucking degrading.

"So, what happens now?"

"I don't know. I eavesdropped on all that stuff. I just do what I'm told."

"Annie...if you know, then just tell me." She stood and pulled me by my leash. I didn't budge. "Annie, _please_."

She pulled again harder. "Pets need to behave, or they get punished at the party."

I blanched. I'd heard enough about pet parties to know that I never wanted to be at one. Pets belong to everyone but themselves, and I strongly valued belonging to only myself.

I lost all semblance of control, begging and screaming. "Annie, no, Annie, please! Don't do this; I'm a whore, _not an animal_! I can't take any more games. Please, please, please please please pleasepleaseplease..."

She wouldn't look at me; she pulled me up forcefully. I couldn't bring myself to fight back. Dread attacked me like thousands of pins and needles. "My job is to get you ready for the party. It's staring soon, and it's a bad idea to be late." I let Annie drag me along, accepting my fate, letting tears run shamelessly down my face. With any luck, the Corporal would arrive and save my ass (quite literally!) before too long.

We went downstairs to another bedroom. This one was much less lavish, but still comfortable, and I actually preferred its simplicity. She told me to sit on the bed, and finally, my handcuffs were removed. She carefully cleaned the blood from my piercings with salt water—I figured that out when she had me swish some around my mouth—and put ointment and gauze on the heart-shaped burn (in a place I didn't like her being) after dumping alcohol over it. She didn't seem to care one bit that cleaning my wounds caused me pain, but she didn't linger, either.

She wordlessly handed me a damp towel and left the room, to give me a little privacy. My throat was sore and bruised from where he choked me, and the shallow cuts he made with a pocket knife around my collarbone got little streaks of red on the towel.

When she came back, she had an outfit for me to change into, although I didn't really consider it clothing at all. It consisted of tiny black shorts that left nothing to the imagination (even shorter than the ones I'd worn earlier, and this time without underwear!) as well as some black, buckled arm warmers and a new dog collar, with studs and everything. When I finished, she nodded and pulled me again by the leash. I heard music playing, but mostly just the beat until we descended into the dark basement.

This entire night was just a fucking throwback to my childhood captivity.

It was a little rave down there, with the strange techno music that had screaming instead of singing, and there black lights and even fog machines. The more I looked around, the more I saw it for what it was: a modern Roman orgy. I saw people using drugs and drinking and engaging in more sex acts than I wanted to know existed. Owners wore Gothic, aristocratic clothing while their pets wore about the same as me, or less. It was sick. People shared their pets and simultaneously took on three or four or more lovers, and it didn't seem to matter who was a man or woman or something in between. Pets came in every shape, size, color and age. I wanted to vomit.

"Do you like what you see?" Annie had disappeared, only to be replaced by Ian.

I tried to play up the innocence, so that it looked less like fear and nausea and hate. "I've never done anything like this before. My short-lived prostitution has been more...vanilla, than this." I wasn't even really lying.

"I think you're ready," he said into my ear, squeezing my hip.

"I...I'll give it a try." I even gave a cute little smile and a nervous blush. He was definitely into my act.

"Everyone." Someone, he managed to command the room's attention, even through all the activity and music. "Welcome, and thank you for attending tonight's events. I'd like to introduce you all to my new pet." There were cat calls and wolf whistles. I took the opportunity to really milk it, making it look like I was nervous and shy. "This is his first party, so please show him a good time. Now, say hello, Jaeger."

"P-please take care of me."

I heard someone call out "I'll take care of you," and that was the only comment I care to share with you.

"I think maybe I should show you all how obedient he is. Right?" Cheering again. I cringed as Ian pushed down on my shoulder, the universal sign for 'on your knees.' I sat on my heels with his crotch in my face and thought about how annoyingly stupid their costumes were. Why wear such complicated clothing if you're just going to take it off?

He threaded his hand through my hair and pulled my head back. "Jaeger, do you like candy?"

Not at all. "Yes."

"Would you like a lollipop?" I can't believe people laughed at that. Seriously? At least be original.

"W-what flavor?" I asked cutely.

"Peach."

Fucking jerk. I fucking love peaches.

I looked him right in the eye and said, my voice husky, "that's my _favorite_." He bit his lip, and I couldn't help but feel a little victorious. After a little struggling, his erection sprang free from his pants and I gasped a little.

"You...it's pierced there."

He chuckled. "I didn't want to make you nervous, so I haven't been wearing it. Is it okay?" I nodded, but it turned me off a bit (or it would have, if I wasn't already supremely disgusted). As I rolled the condom down his shaft, he added, "it's too bad. The piercing would make you feel really nice, if we didn't have to use the condom."

Gross, _gross_, gross. "Maybe next time," I muttered before relaxing my throat and taking him all the way in my mouth. No teasing. I just wanted to get it over with.

The peach flavor wasn't really bad, and I bobbed my head up and down his length a few times before he pulled my hair and panted, "see what I mean? He's eager to please, and he's greedy." I flicked my tongue out at his tip. Apparently it was as amusing in execution as it was in my head. "Want more?" he said, and although I wanted to retch, I opened my mouth and accepted him again. I really suck at giving head, so he was being a good sport. Or, with the way his eyes were dilated, he was too high to really care.

After he came, he let me go, and I tried to make myself scarce. Another few pets were presented in the middle of the room in a similar fashion. People started picking out new partners, and a blond-haired pet pulled me aside.

"Is this really your first party, kid?" He had a nice, kind face, or maybe it used to smile kindly and sweetly at people before he ended up here. I nodded, and he looked a little sad. "How long have you been a pet?"

"Uh...a few hours?"

His eyes widened a little. "Are...you're not a virgin, are you?"

"Of course not." My face flushed a little.

He sighed. "It's just that you look so young. I mean...I'm sorry."

"It's fine," I shrugged.

"Have you got a brand?" I cocked my head to the side before it occurred to me what he meant.

"This?" I pulled the hem of my shorts down a little on my left so he could see the heart-shaped burn mark.

"I've got one too. It shows who you belong to." He showed me his, in the same spot, but his was a geometric rose. "Everyone has one."

"You know, I don't really know anything about being a pet other than...that you never want to end up one."

He chuckled darkly. "You can say that again. Look, you'll be fine. Just...bow when you're addressed, and when you're dismissed. Use 'Miss' and 'Sir,' and be polite, and meek. Never defiant."

"Anything else?"

"Only do what you're instructed to do. Don't approach anyone. Let them come to you. The fact that we're socializing...once we start servicing them, we can't talk to each other anymore. The only reason I can do this now is because you're new, and everyone is still pre-gaming."

"Pre-gaming?"

"You know, getting ready. People are still showing up, having drinks, deciding who they want. Once all that's over, we can't do this kind of thing unless we're instructed to."

I swallowed hard. I really wasn't excited at all.

We looked at each other for a few moments, then he reached into a little pocket I didn't notice he had. "Here. You're going to want some of this." He pressed two colorful tablets into my hand.

"What is that?"

"It's for the nerves. Trust me, it'll make this whole night go way better." I hesitated, but took them. I didn't really have much to lose.

"Now what?"

"Those will take a good while to kick in, and those people won't bother us as long as we're getting geared up. It starts to get old, fucking people who don't want to, so they like to get us drunk and drugged up enough to be into it. If you want, we can drink a little to get started."

"O-okay." He led me over to the back of the basement, where there was a bar, and everyone helped themselves to whatever they liked. "I've never had a drink before," I admitted.

"We'll start small, then." I did three shots of whatever he put in front of me before it started to get difficult to find my mouth, and he laughed a little. "Maybe that's enough?"

"Yeah." My face felt hot, and I laughed. My mind felt fuzzy. "Yeah."

I stumbled, and he caught me. "Take it easy. Make sure you drink lots of water. It's really easy to get dangerously dehydrated at these things, and those pills can make you overheat. People have died for both reasons."

My eyes widened. "People...people die at these parties?"

He didn't look me in the eye. "Not so much anymore. But yeah, it's not that strange. Drug overdose, side effects, bad reactions, alcohol poisoning, you name it. Even the sadomasochistic sex...people who choke each other and hit each other for pleasure...it gets out of hand, sometimes."

My throat felt really dry. The anxiety I felt before was nothing compared to now, even with the help of the alcohol. "Thank you for helping me."

He nodded. "It's...you remind me of my friend Ivan. We...got caught up in this scene together about two years ago. He died after six months. So, I just want to take care of you."

"Thanks," I said, and he kissed me softly.

"I'll get in trouble for touching you without permission later tonight, but...I couldn't help it."

I blushed again. That sort of thing happens to me pretty often.

"Dieter." We turned to see a woman in a crimson gown with long, black hair. Her smile was evil, like Ian's. My new friend bowed to her, so I followed suit. "I see you two have taken a liking to each other." She was trying to sound sexy, but to me it was just like she was constantly yawning. She touched my arm and I shivered. "It's Jaeger, right? Would you like spending a little time with my Dieter?"

I looked at him and he blushed. She was obviously his owner, so he probably knew that she'd ask about that. Was that why he was helping me? Had he picked me out to play with from the start? I wasn't sure if I should feel hurt or not. I looked back at the woman nervously and realized that she wasn't actually asking me. She just expected me to say yes.

"Thank you for allowing me, miss." I remembered to be polite and gave another little bow, and she laughed.

"You're very good. Has Dieter been teaching you how to be a proper young man?" She didn't wait for an answer before turning around and walking away. Dieter took me by the arm and led me along again.

"Jaeger, I'm sorry. I..._did _pick you on purpose. That's what you were thinking, right?"

I pouted. "I had that kind of feeling. That you knew she'd want you to pick someone out, so I was your choice."

"I wasn't doing it to mess with you or anything. I really meant it when I said you reminded me of my friend. I'm sorry if I hurt you, but it would be better if I was your first. I'll be nice to you."

I tried to smile. "I get it. And...I trust that you're not going to hurt me. So, stop feeling bad."

Dieter's face got pink. "You're too cute, Jaeger."

"Not Jaeger. Call me Eren."

We sat on a not-so-comfortable couch next to the woman. "Go ahead," she said in her yawny voice, "you can do it. I just want to watch." That was great, because I didn't know the first thing about pleasing a woman.

Dieter was as nice as he said he would be and I sort of liked it. He was gentle with my piercings and the places where Ian had wounded me. He kissed sweetly and didn't grunt like an animal when he fucked me, just sort of panted softly. If all I had to do was deal with the woman's disgusting moaning as she fingered herself watching us, then it really wasn't so bad.

It was less fun when she asked to watch me masturbate while watching Dieter fuck her, but I didn't like the scary look in her eye when I took too long to respond. Annie wasn't kidding when she warned me that bad pets got punished, and I didn't want that at all. I almost forgot to bow when she dismissed me, and Dieter gave me a strong look.

"Dieter, what are you doing?" I heard the woman say sternly as I started to walk away. "Do you like that boy? Do I have to teach you a lesson?" I cringed. I didn't want him to get hurt on my account.

"No, Miss Rose. I serve only you, Miss Rose."

I didn't want to hear the rest of that.

* * *

I don't know what drugs Dieter gave me, but I started to feel good. Really good. The lights were pretty, the music made me want to move, and the anxiety was melting away. My body felt really hot, and I got bounced around between guys, letting them touch me and suck me and _fuck me and it was almost really enjoyable_.

And then I started to feel _really_ hot, and I kept grinding my teeth.

Out of nowhere, someone pulled me into a dark corner, but I was getting used to that.

"Eren." It was Dieter. "Have you been drinking water like I told you? You don't look too good."

"Dieter, I thought we weren't allowed to do things like this." I got worried. "If you get punished, I won't forgive myself."

"Eren, I gave you the drugs that could kill you. So please, just drink some fucking water." I nodded, and he pulled me toward the stairs, looking around uneasily. When we thought no one was really paying attention to us, we slipped upstairs and made for the kitchen.

"Here." He filled a glass with tap water and handed it to me. I didn't realize I was thirsty until the liquid hit my tongue, and I swallowed it gratefully. I handed him back the glass and he filled it again. "If you ask them for water, they'll give it to you. They're vile, but they aren't monsters." I nodded, gulping it down again.

"Ah. I forgot," I panted. "I forgot that I needed to worry about that."

"It's fine. Drink another." He kept me drinking water until my stomach couldn't hold anymore, then picked me up and sat me down on the counter.

"Dieter? What are you doing?" He put the fingers of his right hand into his mouth and tugged on my shorts with his left. "If we're gone too long, they'll definitely notice."

"I know," he said around his fingers, "but I can't help myself around you, Eren. You're really cute." He took his fingers out of his mouth and pulled at my shorts harder. As he did so, I lifted my butt up a little so they came off easily. "I want to see that face again. That one you made when I was inside of you."

His fingers pressed against my entrance and it sent electricity through my body. I moaned and rubbed myself against him. "It won't be nice like last time," I muttered. "I'm sloppy now."

"It's okay," he breathed. His face was really red, and I could he was really aroused. "I just want to feel you again." He kissed me, hard, and when I closed my eyes it wasn't Dieter I was seeing anymore.

He slid his fingers inside of me and I pressed down on them like the slut that I was. "Oh, Corporal," I moaned.

"Corporal? How did you know I was in the Junior Corps?" I realized my mistake and felt a little guilty. "Did Miss Rose tell you that?" His fingers slowed down.

I grunted and pushed harder on his fingers, trying to distract him. "Mm...that's...that's good. More." He pulled me to the edge of the smooth, granite counter top for better access to my hole. He didn't press the matter of me calling him Corporal, and I continued to imagine Dieter as the short, dark haired man.

"Eren...it's so hot in there. I think if I go in it, I'll die."

I laughed a little deliriously. "I think if you go in me, I'll die." I felt seriously excited. "I really want to do it. I really wanna fuck." The more I tried to talk, the more slurred and awful it got.

"Come here. Bend over the counter." I lost my balance a little when I got down, and he grabbed my waist with a smile. I let out an embarrassed laugh, then let him push me so that my chest was pressed against the cold granite. It felt amazing on my overheated skin.

"Wait," I said when I felt his dick press against me. "We shouldn't do it without protection. Not when we're both being this promiscuous."

He whined, the frustration apparent in his voice. "I know that you're right, but I don't really want to wait. I don't have a condom."

"I do," said a voice that turned my stomach to hear, and we whirled around to see Ian standing next to Miss Rose. Their mouths stretched into sinister grins and their eyes looked murderous.

"I think that we should remind them just who they belong to," she said, the obnoxious yawning sound of her voice replaced by something far more frightening.

Dieter stood in front of me protectively, but that just made Ian laugh. "Jaeger. I don't blame you, since you're new to this," he said, "and I know that your first time on ecstasy is maybe making you lose control, but I'm not happy." He stepped toward me with a look in his eye that made me flinch. "You see, you were acting like a pretty little slut for him, but you don't do that for me. I tried not to spoil you too much earlier, but I see that just made you more wanton and greedy than before. So maybe I'll just indulge you."

I whimpered and cowered behind Dieter, but Miss Rose was having none of it. "Dieter, come here now. You were warned not to covet the boy, so now you must be disciplined." He stepped toward her, defeated. I knew it would be worse if he'd defied her to protect me from Ian, and I'd rather have Ian punish me than watch that happen to him. "Watch your little toy, Dieter," she said, shoving him down to his knees. "Learn who he really belongs to."

Ian caressed my shoulder lovingly before grabbing it harshly and throwing me against the tiled floor. I saw stars; I felt a little dazed, and a little sick. Then I felt a blade bite into my neck.

"I'm not drawing blood, Jaeger," Ian whispered into my ear, making his body flush with mine, "but I could. Okay?"

"Yes, sir." Any arousal I had felt with Dieter shriveled up and died within me, and fear was born in its place.

"So formal." He sat up. "Just call me Ian."

I screamed as he filled me with himself without warning. There was residue in me, but not enough. It had never hurt as much as it did in that moment. He forced himself deeper, without lube or a condom or anything at all. The friction was unbearable, and I felt myself crying, and I'm not sure who was yelling louder, me or Dieter. Ian kept the knife pressed calmly against my neck as he neared completion, thankfully quickly. My entire body trembled as he pulled out and came onto my stomach.

"Ian," I cried. "Ian, it hurts."

"I'm sorry, cutie. But this will help." He slashed my left cheek with the knife and I cried out again. "Does that take your mind off of it?"

"Y-yes. Thank you." My voice wavered and caught in my throat. I winced as he started to lick the blood off of my face, but I was determined to stop crying. He was only doing it to see my reaction, and I didn't want to give it to him anymore.

"Good. Now get up." It took me a couple tries to get to my feet, but I did it. "Who do you belong to?"

"I—I belong to you, Ian."

"That's right. And who does Dieter belong to?"

"M-miss Rose." It was hard to even just breathe. "He belongs to—to Miss Rose."

"Good boy, Jaeger." Fucking hell, do I hate being called that. "Are you going to let him fuck you again?"

"No, sir. No, sir." Now that my body was calming down, I started to feel the pressure that meant I needed the bathroom. I shifted my weight a little from foot to foot, even though it was painful. I drank a lot of water, and being scared and anxious made me really need to go.

"Dieter, do you understand?" Miss Rose glared down at him. "If you go near that boy again without permission, we'll punish you even worse." I didn't understand how they were punishing him. They didn't lay a finger on him, but I just got fucking raped.

"I understand." His voice was broken as well, and she pulled him by his collar back down to the basement.

Ian looked at me. "Shall we return, then?"

"I..."

"What?"

"I need to go. I need to use the toilet."

"You don't get that privilege."

"Wha...what?" I whined. "Ian, please."

"You can go. Go ahead, right here."

I turned bright red. "On your kitchen floor?"

"Yes." He looked really serious. "Why not?"

"It's...it's really humiliating."

"Then learn your fucking place. Go right now, or I'll use the knife to force it out of you."

I trembled again, but when he came at me with the knife, I didn't underestimate him, and gave in to the request.

I wished that I was ten, and back in the basement of the man who stole me. That would be much nicer than pissing on this sick fuck's floor.

* * *

Ian made me take four more pills when we got downstairs and told me that if I didn't make sure to drink water, he'd drown me. "You should ask for a glass before and after you service someone. Got it?" I nodded, and didn't dare defy him. At least he wasn't interested in killing me, although that was starting to look appealing.

Another hour passed, and although the pills really helped to make me feel less anxious, it registered in the back of my mind that the Corporal hadn't come. Maybe I really did give terrible directions, and he'd never be able to find me. Maybe he didn't care about me at all. But at the very least, he'd seemed really interested in finding Ian, so he'd definitely come for _that_ monster.

Right?

* * *

I had just finished blowing some gross old guy who could barely get it up when Ian came to find me again. I flinched as he grabbed my arm, and he laughed.

"I'm not here to hurt you. Someone asked me for you especially." I followed him to another little room of the basement and instantly tensed up. It looked like a little torture chamber, with things hanging off the ceiling and walls to chain people up. There were some sex toys I recognized and some things I was sure I never wanted anywhere near my body. I think they slaughtered an entire herd of cattle for all the leather I saw, and I was sure that I didn't want to meet the business end of those riding crops.

Ian must have seen the sick, frightened look on my face because he said, "don't worry. I don't think he wants to use any of this. He just didn't want to do it in front of the crowd. You know, performance anxiety." If I was lucky, that was true. He handed me a plain brown paper bag.

"What's this for?" I asked, peeking inside.

"He wants you to wear it," he shrugged as he reached the door. "Just put it on, and I'll bring him in."

I pulled the clothes out of the bag. First was a Cardinals football t-shirt and a pair of tight black jeans.

The last item was a green motorcycle jacket with wings on the back.

I smiled.

"Corporal."


	5. Savior

**I still don't own Attack on Titan, and that won't ever change, ever.**

**Thanks to all the people who review! You don't understand how nice it is to get feedback, good or bad. See, getting favorited and followed is nice, but it's kind of like getting sugar cookies. Cookies are nice, but I there aren't any chocolate chips. And that's a little disappointing.**

**But reviews are like fucking pie. I fucking love pie, and I die a little inside when I finish eating it. That's what reviews are like.**

**The Hunters **

**Chapter Four**

**Savior**

They were obviously the Corporal's own clothes. He's short and muscular, so the clothing was short and loose on me. The sleeves on the jacket fit _just _right, but the jeans were kind of like capris on me. I laughed at that, but I was relieved that he wasn't going to see what Ian had done to me. I had crazy piercings and bruises and cuts and wearing real clothing was fucking great.

I heard the door handle and scrambled to get the collar off before the Corporal could see me wearing it. I settled for just pulling off the leash when the collar took too much effort and chucked it across the room. I smiled innocently at Ian as he raised an eyebrow at me, followed closely by the Corporal, who strolled in and filled the room with his presence.

I blushed at how handsome he looked. He wore a black suit with a green vest and a white cravat, and a black cloak on top of all that. I had the brief thought that it really suited him.

I figured I should act like I didn't know him, although maybe Ian recognized him, but maybe not. "Good evening, sir," I bowed. "How can I service you?"

Ian patted me on the head, saying, "good boy, Jaeger." I really was getting so fucking sick of being treated like a dog, and 'good boy' always gave me flashbacks that made me want to rip the throat out of whoever said that to me.

Instead, I smiled again.

"Do whatever he wants, okay? Treat him nicely."

"Yes, sir," I replied obediently.

Ian clapped the Corporal on the shoulder, which earned him a glare, and said, "he's all yours."

"Actually," the Corporal said, a nasty bite to his voice, "you should stay." Ian dropped to the floor, unconscious, and I watched the short man put the pistol back in its holster. The Corporal moved so fast that I didn't see it happen.

"Remind me not to get on your bad side," I chuckled, stepping closer to him. He stepped over Ian with a frown and stopped in front of me, pressing his fingers gently to the gauze taped over my cheek. "It's nothing, really," I said, but it came out more weakly that I'd wanted it to. I moved my body closer to his, but he stepped back.

"What the fuck happened to you? Why can't you talk like a human being?" It was true, my tongue was still swollen and the drugs made me stammer and slur all my words. He peeled open one of my eyelids and scrutinized me. "What are you on? What did they give you?"

"Corporal," I smiled, "I'm so happy to see you." I put my arms around him and pulled him closer, laying sloppy kisses along his jaw. "I knew you would come. I knew it."

"Jaeger, get a hold of yourself," he said angrily, pushing me away. "This isn't over yet. The police are on the way, and I don't want you to get mixed up in the chaos. Go get your shit and hide in the van."

"Ow." I hurt all over, but my nerves flared up again. "Corporal, it hurts."

"What hurts?" His voice was a little kinder. Just a little. "Can you get upstairs? What did this little shit do to you?" He grabbed my shirt and tried to pull it up, but I swatted him away.

"I can do it. Just let me go." He glared at me.

"Jaeger, show me what he did."

"No." The loud music playing from the other room started to give me a headache and I thought I might hurl.

"Jaeger, show me!" He came at me again, trying to pull my shirt up.

I laughed, and it sounded a little insane. "Corporal, are you trying to do dirty things to me? I like you. You don't have to force me." I kissed him hard, my lips sort of crashing onto his, and I shoved my tongue into his mouth when it opened in surprise. He pushed me away again, harder.

"Is that a piercing in your mouth?"

"Haha. Yes. Did you like it?" I stumbled a little. "Do you know where it would feel really good?"

He grabbed my shoulders harshly and I cried out. "Jaeger, can you make it upstairs by yourself? This is important."

"It would feel really good if I put your dick in my mouth." I giggled. "Corporal, let's do it. Right now. I wanna fuck you."

"You're going to make me seriously hate you. Go upstairs, right now."

I kind of just felt like laughing. "Did you see the lights out there? Aren't they really pretty?" I swallowed hard. "I feel really hot. Okay, I'm going. I'm going to get some water."

"Get to the fucking van, brat."

"Yeah." I reached the door. "Yeah, I know. You said it was important."

* * *

I did drink more water when I got upstairs, and being out of the mess of the party helped a little, but my head was starting to get seriously foggy. For a minute it would be clear, and then it would be hard to concentrate. I was able to make it back to the bedroom where my bag was, somehow. I grabbed my phone and shoved my clothes in there before trying to find Annie. I didn't think there was a good enough reason for her to get arrested along with her brother.

"Eren." She found me first.

I took her by the arm and started to pull her downstairs with me. "The police are coming. We've got to get out of here." She stared at me for a moment, then nodded. I briefly thought of Dieter, but I doubt I'd be able to just pull him out of the party with Miss Rose hanging around. The Corporal was dragging Ian across the kitchen floor toward the front door, grumbling about the floor being wet. I flushed red and decided not to explain that to him.

"Corporal, what is he wearing?" It was some kind of leather body suit with a mask.

"Telling people that our play got a little out of hand is easier than saying that I pistol-whipped the fucker. He deserves more than that, but I don't really have the time." He glared at me, dropping Ian not-so-gently on the floor. "Neither do you. Why aren't you outside yet?"

I gestured to Annie. "Can I bring her? She's special to me."

"I don't care if you want to bring the fucking Pope, brat. Just get out of here."

"Okay." I started out the door.

"Oi. Give me my jacket. I can't be seen in this getup." I took his cloak and cravat in exchange. The jacket looked much more at home on him than me.

* * *

The sirens were getting close, and Annie and I just made it. As I closed the door, the first cars pulled into the cul-de-sac. I sat against the side of the van hugging my knees to my chest, and the adrenaline started to wear off.

The pain and emotion and everything was coming full force. My teeth were grinding, I needed to use the bathroom again, I wanted to throw up, the moonlight coming in through the windshield was not even _nearly enough light_, and there was so much noise, so much noise from outside, and I didn't know whether to feel happy or cry or what and I didn't know what was going on and I couldn't breathe and everything hurt everything hurt everything—

"Eren." Annie sat next to me, her legs pressed against mine, and it was really comforting.

"It's freezing in here," I stuttered, and pulled the Corporal's cloak over myself and her. I felt her snuggle up closer to me.

"Why did you save me? I didn't help you at all back there." I couldn't see her face.

"You were just doing what you needed to do. I don't blame you. And it didn't make me happy, but I understand. I don't think you're the same class of monster as your brother. So I didn't want you to go down with him."

"I wouldn't have done the same, if our positions were reversed."

"That doesn't matter to me. I wanted to do it, so I did it."

I felt her looking at me. "I would have definitely been arrested if they knew that I had an idea of what was going on and did nothing. I'd be an accomplice."

"I don't call doing nothing and actively helping the same crime. That's fucking dumb." I shivered. Annie pushed my legs flat out in front of me and sat in my lap.

"You're getting pretty bad. Sick, I mean. Did you take too much ecstasy? Did you mix any drugs?"

"I-I don't know. I don't know."

"Did you know that drinking too much water is dangerous too? It's called Hyponatremia."

"I feel nauseous. Do you think I did that?"

"If you did, it's only acutely. You should get some salt in your system. Is there anything in this car?"

"I don't know." She got off of me and rummaged around the van in the dark. "How do you know that?"

"It's interesting to me. For a long time, I've wanted to join the military. First, I wanted to be a medic. Now, I think I want to join the military police."

"I wanted to join, too. But I don't think I want to do anything as cushy as that. I want to do real work. Like a Green Beret, or something cool like that. The elite."

"I don't want to throw myself into death like that." She came back and pressed something to my mouth. "Eat this." It was a pretzel. "It's the best I can do right now."

"It's fine." She kept feeding me pretzels, sitting back on my lap again. "Annie, I don't really want to eat. I'm not hungry."

"You need to. You haven't eaten anything in eight hours."

"What are you going to do now? I guess you could stay with me tonight, but what about in the future? You can't exactly come back here."

"I'll call Sasha and stay there. After that, I can sneak back here and steal my brother's hidden stash. I don't think the cops will find it. I'll use that money to take care of myself until I can join the military. So don't worry."

"Okay." I let my eyes close. I felt really, really tired, and Annie's body was warm on mine. The beating of her heart was comfortable against my chest. I felt her kiss my cheek, and I think she said thank you, but I was already losing myself to sleep.

* * *

Distantly, I heard someone calling my name.

"Hey, brat. Jaeger. Wake up. Jaeger, wake up."

"Huh?" I looked around frantically, trying to get my bearings. I was freezing, shaking like a leaf, but covered in sweat. My throat was dry and sore, and I couldn't get my eyes to focus on anything.

"There you are. See, I was going to be nice and let you sleep, but you started screaming fucking bloody murder. Brat, can't even get fucking sleeping right."

"I'm sorry."

"Tch. Don't do all that and then pretend everything is okay. Are you ready to tell me what happened yet?"

"I told you nothing happened." He looked like he wanted to punch me, but settled for dragging me out of the back of the van. "Ow, fuck! Stop it, it hurts." Tears sprang to my eyes, but I didn't want to cry.

"No, it doesn't. Nothing happened," he spat back at me. As soon as my feet hit the asphalt, I doubled over and vomited. It was only stomach acid, but it just kind of poured out of me without warning. "You couldn't have warned me, brat? Fucking disgusting. You're not going to do that again, are you? If you puke in there, you're going to fucking clean it."

I shook my head. "I feel hella better now."

He glared at me again, saying, "don't step in that shit. Idiot," as he helped me over to the front of the van. "Be glad you didn't get any on me."

Sitting in the front was admittedly more comfortable than in the back, and it hit me that Annie wasn't there anymore. "Corporal, what happened to Annie?"

"Your little girlfriend? I dropped her off somewhere in Gilbert."

"She's not—I mean, we're not anything like that."

"You looked pretty cozy back there to me. All snuggled up. But I guess you do that with everyone, huh?"

I didn't really want to respond to that.

We drove for another ten minutes until he finally said something. "So, what are you on right now?"

"Ugh," I groaned. My head was still really hazy. "Uh, ecstasy."

"Huh. And how's that treating you?"

"Not as well as it was two hours ago. Fuck, everything felt really nice about two hours ago."

He stared ahead at the road silently. "And what possessed you to get in a car with Ian fucking Dietrich?"

"He wasn't exactly giving me a choice. I was out with my friends and he was feeling me up in front of them. It was so embarrassing."

"You got in a car with that piece of shit because you got a little embarrassed? Are you fucking kidding?" It was the first time he'd raised his voice at me.

"I haven't had a friend in five years. Sorry that I wanted to seem like a normal teenager for a change. Fucking sue me." I didn't have the energy to yell at all.

"Do you have a fucking death wish?" He screamed so loud that I was legitimately scared. He looked at me with the same kind of anger that Ian did when he caught me messing around with Dieter. "Do you have _any idea_ of who he is? Of what he's capable of? You seriously could have died. _You could have died_. Is that sinking in for you yet? Because you seem pretty fucking clueless, you little shit! You risked your life because you were too afraid to tell your little friends that you're a—a prostitute."

"You can say it. That I'm a whore. That's what you meant, right?"

"Are you seriously nitpicking about that right now? Have you even been listening?" I felt the car speed up considerably.

"Yeah, I've been listening. You were complaining about me almost dying. Well, guess what? I'm still fucking here." I sneaked a peek at the speedometer. "Does it even matter? Would it have been so bad if I'd died? Who would have cared? I'm just some kid. I don't exist. There's no one who cares about me. If I'd died, at least all of this shit would just be _over. _ So please, just explain to me why that would be bad."

We were flying down the freeway at about ninety miles an hour. Granted, it's way less dangerous at around two-thirty in the morning, but that didn't make me feel better about it. "You're so fucking clueless," he continued. "You are really fucking clueless."

I grunted in frustration. I really didn't have the energy to fight. "Could you just slow the fucking car down? You're going to kill us."

"I thought you didn't fucking care," he growled, but stepped on the brake.

We didn't speak for the rest of the ride.

Somehow, the tension melted out along the way.

* * *

We finally came to stop outside of a Homewood Suites in northern Phoenix. I was unsteady on my feet, and the Corporal had to put an arm around me just so that I could make it to the door. "Take it easy, Jaeger," he muttered as he got on the elevator.

"Thanks." He didn't look at me. "I mean it, really. Thank you."

"Hm."

The suite was like an apartment, with a living room and a full kitchen, a dining table and a desk, and even a private bedroom. I thought about my tiny motel room and thought it would be great to upgrade. But I wasn't legally old enough to get my own hotel room. The good thing about the place I was staying was that no one asked any questions or even remotely cared, as long as you paid.

The Corporal sat me down on the couch and told me to relax. I felt really awkward, but I was glad to not be in my own room. That place held a lot of bad memories, and I don't think I could have handled that.

"How are you feeling?" he called from the kitchen.

"Ugh...kind of out of it," I replied weakly. "My head hurts, my stomach is upset, and I feel pretty weak."

He came back with a red Gatorade. "Drink this. When was the last time you ate?"

"I'm not hungry."

"I didn't fucking ask if you were hungry, brat," he snapped, then sighed, as if trying to find his patience again. "Just answer the question."

"I think...I think I ate around five." I looked over at the clock. It was three in the morning.

He scoffed and walked off again. I cracked open the drink and gulped half of it down by the time he returned. "Slow down, idiot." He tossed some saltines in my direction and they hit me in the chest. "You can't eat too fast either."

I sighed and closed my eyes, letting my head fall back onto the wall. "I don't really wanna exist right now."

He nudged my arm. "Just eat some crackers and take a bath." I didn't move at all and I heard him fussing with the plastic wrapping on the saltines. "You're a lazy brat," he muttered, pressing three crackers to my lips. I opened my mouth enough to let them be pushed in. "Well, fucking eat them," he added when I didn't start to chew. I felt bad for irritating him, but he didn't understand. I was really serious when I said I just didn't want to do anything anymore. I just wanted to stop being at all.

I started to chew them slowly and opened my eyes halfway, watching him go into the bathroom. I heard the water start up. I closed my eyes again, letting myself drift off.

"Jaeger." The Corporal poked me hard in the ribs. "You can't fall asleep yet. You're fucking filthy."

I opened my eyes and gave him the most hateful look I could muster.

He cracked a smile. "Not bad."

I tried really hard to stand up, I did. But the drugs were wearing off and so was the adrenaline and everything was really catching up to me. "Jaeger, settle down. I've got you." He picked me up like a bride and carried me to the bathroom, and I admit it. For someone who was trying to take care of me really nicely, I was being a fucking asshole. But I'd had enough of being manhandled.

"What the fuck, Corporal? There are lots of less embarrassing ways to carry someone." My face was pretty red. It was becoming a pretty common thing.

"You don't get to complain, brat." He sat me on the edge of the tub and unbuttoned my pants.

I punched him in the shoulder. "Don't do that. Please, just let me be alone."

His eyes narrowed darkly. "Brats who allude to suicide don't get to leave my sight. You've earned exactly zero minutes of you time. It's us time now."

I rolled my eyes. "Nothing happened."

"You really know how to test me. Jaeger, you're a terrible fucking liar. It's obvious that you don't want to get naked in front of me because you don't want me to see what happened. If nothing really happened, then you're just being a little fucking brat. The only reason you'd mention wanting to die is because you're an attention-seeking little shit. There are people out there who have been through _real_ pain. So don't fucking belittle what they've been through with your 'nothing.' Unless, it's actually something."

"Fuck you. I don't know why you care. We fucked once. If you can't handle that sort of thing, then maybe you shouldn't pick up hookers."

He raised his hand and I really thought he was going to kick the shit out of me.

Instead, he slammed the door shut and left me in there.

I sat there for a while before I found the strength to peel off my clothes and lower myself into the bath. The hot water stung and felt amazing at the same time.

And before I knew it, the world went dark.


	6. Monster

**If you didn't know, I update my profile pretty often with information about my fics, like what's going on hiatus and what's supposed to be updated and when, if that sort of thing interests you, or anything. I don't fucking know.**

**GUESS WHO FINALLY FIGURED FUCKING TRANSITIONS OUT. ME. Only took me three years. Damn you, fanfiction.**

**This is a disclaimer that I don't own Attack on Titan. It's ridiculous that I have to include one, because by definition, fanfiction is fiction created by fans of the work. If I fucking owned it, it wouldn't be fanfiction anymore. **

**Yes.**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter Five - Monster**

I was awake, but I didn't open my eyes. I was so comfortable that I decided not to move an inch, even if I was on fire.

Okay, maybe then things would have been different.

It took a couple seconds to realize that my own bed was not this comfortable, and the events that took place the night before suddenly flooded back to me.

_I am an asshole._

I heard the sound of a page turning and the bed creaked. So, the Corporal was indeed still with me. When you spend your life under people panting and grunting so obnoxiously, it's kind of amazing to not hear the sound of breathing at all.

I don't know how he knew I was conscious, since I literally hadn't even opened my eyes, but he said something then. "You're finally awake, huh?" Maybe the gears in my head turned loudly or something. "The way you were breathing changed."

And apparently I was broadcasting thoughts.

"I'm not a mind reader, you brat. It's just that you're predictable."

I wanted to say something snarky, but I figured he'd had about enough of me being intolerable, so I settled on: "Good morning, Corporal." I opened my eyes and tilted my head to see him sitting cross-legged at the foot of the bed. It took about every ounce of strength I had.

He closed the book with a little huff, then laid it on the bed and left the room. I saw another bottle of Gatorade soar through the air and it landed next to me with a thud. I'm not sure how exactly he'd managed to throw that so well, seeing as the kitchen rounded a corner and he didn't step out at all, but I was a little impressed.

I was way too tired to reach for it, and the Corporal made no move to reenter the bedroom, so I just let it lie there and stared at the ceiling.

All of a sudden, he startled me, yelling from the other room, "Did you really try to fucking kill yourself in my bathtub?"

"What?" My voice was really raspy. "Of course not. Drowning sounds awful. If suicide is an escape from pain, then I'd be doing it wrong." I didn't like that he'd pulled me out of the tub. I guessed that he'd also just kind of thrown me into bed, because I was still naked, and I didn't like that either.

He scoffed. "I didn't realize there was a _right_ way to kill yourself."

"It should be nice," I explained simply. "Like taking a ton of sleeping pills and then just not waking up."

"I see." He rounded the corner carrying a plate and came toward me. "I know you're not really interested in food, but fucking eat it."

I nodded, accepting the plate. I felt like I needed to make up for my bad attitude and decided that I'd be really obedient. "Thank you."

"Just don't get any fucking crumbs in here." He lay back and turned on the television while I ate, slowly. I'm not sure if I crept closer to him or if he crept closer to me, but we ended up half-snuggling, and it was pretty fucking awkward.

"Jaeger, do you ever decide to wait to take a shit? And then it makes you feel sick, and by the time you're ready to let it out it's too late."

"...Sure."

"That's why you should just tell me what happened last night." I gave him a look, and he responded by taking my plate away and putting an arm around me. "Because holding that kind of shit in doesn't make it better for anyone. You'll end up like me if you decide not to let it out. Then there isn't really any going back from it."

"Uh...okay. Why did that need to involve a poop analogy?"

He glared at me. I was starting to get used to that, too. "Look, it's not really easy for me to say stuff like this."

"I'm sorry."

He made a weird, strangled noise and pushed me back down onto the bed. "You drive me crazy."

"I think the feeling is mutual," I smiled coyly.

He brought his lips down to mine, not doing a great job of being gentle about it. He pushed the blanket away from me, exposing my bare flesh to the cold. I shivered violently, and the way his cool fingers ran down my chest only helped to send shivers down my spine.

"Corporal," I panted, "don't you think it's indecent to do dirty things first thing in the morning?"

He looked down at me with a heated gaze. "Brat, you slept in until noon. Besides, isn't it better when you've just woken up? Morning wood and all?"

I shoved a pillow in his face. "_Morning_ wood, not middle-of-the-day wood."

"You're right. Not because you're right, brat; don't be too pleased with yourself. But I've got someplace to be, and you're coming with me."

"All right."

* * *

I showered quickly, but gingerly, and I wished I had some clean clothing, but I got stuck with the Cardinals t-shirt and my black shorts. The Corporal grimaced at me. "Couldn't you dress less...provocatively?"

"Fuck you," I laughed, "they aren't really that short."

"Maybe not from where you're standing." I swear that he was hiding a smile from me.

We got outside and he started up the van. I put my seatbelt on and smiled expectantly, wondering where we were heading.

"What's that dopey face for, brat?"

I faltered a bit. "Where are we going?"

"To collect the bounty on Ian."

I blinked. "You're a bounty hunter?"

"The best," he replied smugly, although his face was as blank as ever. "You know, personal information about myself doesn't come for free. It's your turn."

I looked away. "What do you want to know?"

"What happened last night."

"I...It's a long story."

"We've got twenty minutes, Jaeger." I bit my lip and looked out the window. "I've already seen it. So the worst is over. If you explain it, it will make you feel better."

I stammered a bit. "Take a deep breath," he said. "Start at the beginning. You were with your friends."

"I...yeah. I was with my friends. And he showed up, and I decided to go with him. I wanted to contact you, but he took my phone. I got nervous, so I tried hard to remember the way to his house."

"You did a good job. Finding you wasn't the problem. It was the party. You need a costume to get in, so they know you're one of them. I had to pull a lot of strings, and it took longer than I wanted. So..."

"Don't apologize for anything. Really. You've done more than I could ask for."

I stopped talking and listened to the roar of the wind coming in through the open windows. "Well, don't stop now," he said. "What happened next?"

I licked my lips. "H-he told me to shower. When I came out, he...handcuffed me to the bed so that I wouldn't move, and he p-pierced me." I had to close my eyes and get a grip. "Uh, he, uh, started with my tongue. Fuck, that hurt." I absently put my fingers to my lips. "Then he did my...my nipples. And then my belly button. That one didn't really hurt. I was too focused on the pain of the others." I peeked over at him, blushing, my heart threatening to beat out my chest. He stared straight ahead, and maybe there was tension in his jaw, or maybe I imagined it.

"He left me there for a while. When he came back, it was to touch me. To take me almost all the way there and then leave me again." I laughed incredulously. "Have you ever had that happen? To be right on the edge of your climax and then not be able to release? It was so painful." I stuttered and swallowed hard. "And when I finally started to relax again, he came back and fucked me. Choked me hard while he did it too. My throat still feels sore." I absently touched my throat.

"Then he left again. Then he came back. Kept telling me I was pretty." I chuckled. "Boys aren't pretty. But he kept saying it. 'You're so pretty. I like the face you make when it hurts. I want to see it again. Jaeger, you're so pretty.' So he cut up my collarbone to see if I'd make that pretty face. And I guess he got what he wanted, because he came on my stomach. Then he licked it off and thanked me. And I thought that maybe, _maybe_ it was over then."

"Jaeger..."

"The next time he came in, he branded me. The heart symbol that makes me his property. That's when I finally contacted you. After that."

"Stop."

"Then, I had to go to the party. I took the ecstasy and I had to let all those people do whatever they wanted with me." My voice sounded hollow, even to my own ears.

"I don't want to hear anymore." His voice was not flat or even like it usually was, and he gripped the steering wheel so hard that his knuckles were white.

I couldn't believe he'd just said that to me. I gaped at him for a moment. "Corporal...you don't...you don't get to badger me about this and then take it back."

"I'm fucking sorry. I shouldn't have made you do it. So don't tell me anymore."

"Don't you want to hear about how he raped me without a condom? How he humiliated me? How he cut my face so he could lick off the blood? Don't you want to know why I wanted to die?"

"Jaeger, just shut the fuck up, all right?"

I did.

* * *

"Corporal," the blond man said, smiling warmly as we entered the police station. "Really have to congratulate you on this. We've been chasing Ian for years, and here you catch him red-handed in only one week."

"If I'm being honest, Erwin, I had some help. Meet my protege."

"Oh? I didn't know you had one." Erwin looked me up and down, not even trying to hide his surprise.

"I'm Eren Jaeger, sir." I bowed a little without meaning to, and my face got pink. "It's nice to meet you."

Erwin laughed. "I never expected any protege of Levi's to be so polite. You don't have to bow in the future, Eren."

"S-sorry, sir."

"I'm Commander Erwin. You don't have to call me sir, either."

"Right. Sorry." I laughed nervously.

"Anyway, come on in. I'll get that check written up for you."

We walked in, heading toward the back of the station. "So, what are you in charge of, Commander?" I asked.

"I'm actually the Commander of the Central District in Las Vegas. But I oversee many bounty hunters, including Levi. I don't usually deal directly with a case, but this one is pretty big, and they asked me to come down."

"Erwin," Levi interrupted, "I'd like to speak with Ian."

He raised an eyebrow. "I don't know if you can do that. You'd have to ask the Captain here for permission." Levi nodded stiffly and walked off. "Uh, right. Ahem. Well, Eren, you can wait here in one of these chairs, if you'd like."

I smiled. "Thank you, sir."

He ruffled my hair with a hearty laugh. "Didn't I tell you just to call me Erwin? It's really fine. Do you want a soda while you're waiting?"

"Water would be nice."

"Sure, I'll grab you one." I watched him walk away and felt drained. I just wanted to sleep forever.

"Tell me, Eren, how you came to be the apprentice of a guy like Levi. He's never mentioned you before."

"Ah, right." I took the water and played with the cap. I'm not a great liar. "Well, the thing is, actually, that it just kind of happened. See, Ian came to my job and the Corporal asked me about him."

"Where do you work?"

"At, uh, at a convenience store."

"And why did the Corporal ask you in particular?"

I blinked. "Huh?"

"I'm assuming that you are the cashier?" I nodded. "So, what reason does Levi have to believe you'd know Ian? You're nice to all of your customers, right? Or were you especially friendly to Ian?"

"Well," I fumbled with the water bottle, "I guess I was maybe nicer to him? Not very many people are friendly, so I try to be extra nice to the people who treat me like more than a servant." Those words tasted bad in my mouth. Treating me like a servant was exactly what Ian had done.

"How did that turn into this?"

This was starting to feel like an interrogation. "You mean, how did I become the Corporal's pet? I guess I was curious about what being a bounty hunter was like. And he let me tag along."

"Levi, the most antisocial bastard on the planet, decided to let some curious teenager 'tag along' on a dangerous assignment?"

Well, it sounds really fucking dumb when you say it _like that._ "Ha, well, it was more like I relentlessly hung around him until he had no choice."

"And your parents don't mind you doing this?"

"Ah—oh, well, you see, that's—that's—" I was saved by a sudden commotion down the hallway.

"Commander Erwin! Captain! Come quickly!" A man was yelling from the doorway of an interrogation room at the end.

"Eren, stay here." I nodded, but I wasn't going to obey that. I guzzled down about half the the water before jumping up to see what all the excitement was, but it had spilled out of the interrogation room into the hall. Three officers, including Erwin, were holding back Levi, who kicked and screamed and spat profanity and almost escaped their grasp. They dragged him into a room across the way while another two officers pulled Ian out of the room—at least, what was left of him.

Ian was a mess. His face and chest were covered in blood, his nose was crooked, and there were definitely fingers bent in ways they didn't belong. My eyes widened as they carried him past me.

Had he...had Levi done all that to him?

I ran over to where they had taken the Corporal, and luckily they'd left the door wide open. Levi looked like a rabid, wild animal. Not one single shred of the composure he always had, even when he was screaming at me in the car. His hair was disheveled, his eyes were crazy, he really did foam at the mouth; there was blood on his knuckles and splattered across his cheek, and two officers were holding him down in the chair.

"You can't let that fucking scum of the Earth walk away! He deserves what he got! He deserves so much fucking more!"

"Levi, shut up! Just shut the fuck up! Are you kidding me? Do you think we _want_ to protect that piece of garbage? I can't wait to see him get stuck by the needle, but that's the law! This, whatever you just did right there, that's not justice! You can't just come running in here on some personal vendetta, whatever that may be—I mean, what the fuck were you thinking? You nearly killed him!"

"Erwin, you have no fucking idea, no fucking _clue_ what he did! A fancy execution by injection is too good for him! I won't feel better until I know he's dead, and _I want to fucking do it_, right here with my bare hands!"

"Levi, right now, this needs to stop. If you say one more word, I will arrest you. You need to leave, _now_. I'll drop your money off. I can save you just this once, but if you go anywhere near Ian Dietrich again, there will be nothing I can do, and you'll be arrested. Is that clear?"

Levi was seething, but he'd stopped being violent. "Fucking crystal."

I trembled, spun around on my heel, and made a beeline for the door. I needed to get out, I needed to breathe, I needed to feel like the building wasn't closing in on me.

"Fuck," I cried right before I vomited on the sidewalk outside the front door. The tears stung my face, the stomach acid burned, and I coughed and hiccoughed repeatedly, trying to get a grip. I'd just seen a monster—something frightening and horrifying.

I dumped the water that was left in the bottle on my face, to try and clean up or calm down or anything; I took deep breaths, I bent over with my hands on my knees. "Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck," I cried softly to myself.

"Jaeger." It was Levi's voice, hard and cold, and pointed. "Get in the car." He put a hand out to guide me, but I flinched and backed away.

"Don't. Don't touch me."

"Jaeger, come on. You'll calm down in the car and feel better when we get back to the room." His voice was only marginally kinder.

"I don't want to go anywhere with you," I shouted, my voice thick with tears.

"And how will you get there by yourself?" Harsh, again. I don't know if Levi can do anything that isn't abrasive.

"I don't give a shit, I'll walk or take a bus or whatever. I can't be around you right now."

"As if I'd let you do any of that in your condition!" He grabbed my arm and pulled me toward the van.

"Don't touch me, I said!"

"Stop acting like a child!"

"No!" I screamed, wrenching my arm out of his grasp. "I trusted you to save me from that monster, and instead you turned into one!"

The look of pain that flashed across his face as I ran off may very well haunt me for the rest of my life.

**In case you were wondering, the way bounty hunters work in real life is not fun at all. The great thing about writing in an Alternate Universe is that you can do whatever the fuck you want. AU for the win!**

**Reviews are love!**


	7. Nightmares

**Sorry that this chapter isn't super exciting. But! It sets up some important stuff for later! So bear with me.**

**I don't own SnK!**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter 6**

I don't know if this occurred to you, so let me just say it:

I have really great stamina.

I ran for an hour.

Not full speed mind you, but I kept a steady pace. Running clears my head, and I wanted nothing more than to disappear. I felt numb, I felt empty, and I figured that not existing for a while would be great. I wanted everything to go away.

I wound up back at the police station. I just ran four miles, and maybe I should have run back to the hotel, but I wasn't ready to see Levi, so I just ran in circles until I ran out of options. I didn't have money for a bus, and calling up Levi seemed like a terrible idea. 'Sorry for being a prick. Please come get me.' Yeah fucking right.

I decided that if Commander Erwin were still around, I could ask him pretty please to take me home, not that I had one to go to. I didn't want to be alone. I didn't want to be with Levi.

"Eren?"

I turned around. "D-Dieter? What are you doing here?" I tried to smile pleasantly, but it probably looked m ore like I'd caught a whiff of something awful.

He brought a hand up to my cheek and stroked it softly. "I'm so glad you're safe. You look so tired. How are you feeling?"

I leaned into the touch. I felt so hot, and his hand was cool. "I feel all right," I lied. "You look tired too."

He laughed. "I was feeling fine until I had to come down here and give my official statement. But, I'm happy. They arrested Miss Rose and the others, and in a few days, I'll be back home."

I put my hand over his. "That's really great."

"Yeah." He paused. "Is there somewhere I can take you? You should really be resting."

"I'm really hungry," I realized. "I'm starving."

"Let's go somewhere, then."

* * *

We got hamburgers and sat in the grass. He told me about his time in the Junior Corps in high school. He'd never wanted to join; it was just to that his dad would accept him. I felt sorry for him, and I was kind of glad that my parents died before they had the chance to reject me. Maybe that's a terrible thought, but I don't think they'd have liked me very much.

"What did you do in high school, Eren?"

I shrugged. "I haven't been in a real school since the fifth grade. Anyway, I'm only fifteen."

He looked surprised. "Really? I...didn't realize you were so young."

"Does it bother you?"

"Well, I try not to make a habit of fucking underage boys."

I laughed genuinely. "I routinely fuck older men. So, if you're wondering whether it bothers me, well, you're in luck. I actually appreciate your youth."

"My youth? I'm twenty-one," he laughed.

"Younger than most of my clients," I nodded.

He cocked his head to the side. "Your clients?"

"Yeah, uh..." I felt that awkward ashamed feeling again. "I'm sort of...a prostitute? Ha, no, I mean, I _am _one. It's just...weird saying it out loud."

"But, Eren, I don't get it. Don't your parents take care of you?"

I shrugged. "They died a long time ago. It's just been me. For a long time." Fuck, my chest hurt. "I don't really want to talk about it."

He nodded, and we were quiet for a while.

* * *

"So, uh...should I take you home?" We sat in his car, going nowhere. "I mean, do you have a place to go, or do you want to come to mine?"

I shrugged. "There's somewhere I'm staying, but if you want to go back to yours..."

He blushed, and I noticed that since I'd told him more about myself (namely, my age and my profession) he was acting shy. I missed the kind assertiveness he'd had when I first met him.

"I just don't want you to feel like you have to...I mean, we don't have to do anything like that...we can just hang out, un-unless you want to?"

I smiled. "Dieter, are you asking me to have sex?"

"N-no! I mean, I don't want you to feel like you have to."

"I know."

He nodded. "If you're sure...I'll have to go to the store first."

"That's fine."

* * *

"Sorry that it's nothing special," Dieter said, unlocking the door to his room. "The police are paying for it until my flight, so..."

It was simple, but still leagues above my own hole-in-the-wall. "This is fine, really." I slipped my sandals off and sat on the bed.

"Eren, are you sure?"

I nodded. "Why not? As long as you're gentle...I mean, I'm pretty sore, but..."

He sat beside me, but not close. "I'm just wondering if you can handle it."

"It's just sex, isn't it?"

"Is it? I don't know if I'd see it the same way after being raped."

"Do you think that Ian Dietrich is the first man to have raped me?" I laughed darkly. "Not quite."

Dieter looked sad. "Eren..."

"I'm saying, do you want to fuck or not?"

He looked at me seriously and replied, "I want to show you what it's like to be loved."

I blushed and looked away, but he crept closer, pushing me back onto the bed. "How do you say things like that with a serious face?"

"Because I mean it," he whispered, pressing his lips to mine. They were soft, and he kissed me sweetly. I told myself I was fine, but I really felt nervous. It's true, that I was used to feeling violated and used, that I was no stranger to nightmares and sleepless nights, but that's how I deal with things: I either push them away and pretend they aren't there, or it's a trial by fire. When I was afraid of heights, I climbed up gradually higher things to teach myself that there was nothing to be afraid of. So, if Ian had made me afraid of sex, then I would fuck until it felt good again.

If only it were that easy.

Everything made me wince in pain. I had that gash on my cheek, my tongue piercing made kissing difficult, my throat was bruised, and one of the cuts on my collarbone even opened up again. We got as far as taking my shirt off when I started to shiver.

"Maybe we should just stop," Dieter said, grimacing. "You keep telling me you're fine, but I know I'm hurting you."

"It's fine," I said impatiently. If I couldn't even do this, then Ian would win.

"You're trembling."

"It's just cold in here," I lied. "Come on." I took one of his hands and pressed it in the middle of my chest.

"All right." Dieter licked at my nipples, and as long as it didn't press on the piercing too hard, it felt good. He stroked my sides and I started to relax again. I didn't close my eyes. I had to reassure myself that it was just Dieter. Dieter wouldn't hurt me.

He sat up and looked down at me, his fingers tracing down from my navel (ow, again, fucking piercings) to the hem of my pants. He started to unbutton them and whispered, "Fuck, you're pretty."

I very nearly lost it then. My whole body froze, and all I could think about was Ian, touching me and hurting me and I couldn't breathe and the world was closing in around me and—

"Eren? Eren! Shit, I'm sorry. Eren, are you okay?"

"Yeah," I panted hard, trying to get enough air. "I just—I remembered something. It's not your fault."

Dieter eyed me warily. "You can't handle this."

I wiped some wetness away from my eyes. "I can! Just trust me. Just don't say anything." I really wanted it to work.

"...Okay. But if you freak out one more time, that's it. I don't want to do anything that'll hurt you."

I nodded. "I promise, I won't freak out again."

It was a really hard promise to keep.

Dieter continued to undress me, and I shivered again. I put my hands on his shoulders so that he couldn't get too close and I kept looking at his face, trying to remind myself that this man wasn't Ian. But I kept seeing Ian's face and hearing his voice and feeling his touch. I was scared, my heart was beating out of my chest, and I wasn't even a little bit hard. Dieter stroked between my legs and I took deep breaths to calm down. My body eventually responded, but my brain was still in overdrive, and I almost lost it again when I felt his fingers slip into me.

I decided that maybe if I didn't focus on it, it would be okay. I stopped looking at Dieter and started looking at _everything_ else in the room. The little shopping bag from the store we'd stopped at, the bottle of lube, the pack of condoms, the lint on the bedspread, the dust that collected on the lamp, the black scuff mark on the white wall—

"Eren, can I put it in?" Dieter's voice was strained.

"Yes," I breathed.

I don't really remember the rest.

* * *

Dieter cradled me gently, my back to his chest, and pressed kisses to the back of my neck and behind my ears. "Have you calmed down some?"

"Yeah," I croaked. I was embarrassed. I had cried hysterically for a while, and Dieter was being really nice, even though he was probably upset. I turned to face him, putting my hands on his chest. "I'm all right now," I smiled.

He stroked my face, avoiding the cut. "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault. Besides, I think it helped a little."

"You're a bad liar."

"So I've been told."

We held each other quietly for a while.

"You know, Eren," he started, "you don't have to go back to being a prostitute."

"Sure I can. It's easy." I was honestly terrified of going back to that life.

"Eren, stay with me."

"You want me to spend the night? That's going to cost you," I joked.

"No, I mean _stay_ with me. Come to Minnesota. I'll take care of you. We have a farm. My family will like you. You can take care of the chickens and make me dinner and I'll make love to you all night."

I laughed genuinely. "You want me to be your wife?"

"Doesn't it sound nice?"

I sighed. "It sounds nicer than this." But I'd rather live that beautifully simple life with someone else. As if that guy would ever settle down and make me his wife. Right.

"Why don't you sleep on it? You can let me know tomorrow."

"...You're really being serious, aren't you?"

Dieter laughed. "Of course!"

* * *

"You're going to think about it right?" Dieter asked. We sat in his car again, outside of the hotel where Levi was staying.

"Yes." I might as well. Once Levi left, there really wouldn't be anything for me in Arizona.

"Well, take care."

"You too." Every joint in my body groaned in disapproval as I exited the car and made my way back to Levi's room. Wherever that was. I didn't really remember. I took a wild guess based off of what my brain remembered and knocked on a door.

At first, I thought no one was there, but as soon as I decided to walk away, the door opened and I was pulled into an embrace.

"You fucking brat. I was worried sick, you know?"

"Hey, Corporal."

The dark-haired man glowered at me, pushing me back against the door that he slammed closed. "What the fuck is wrong with you? Running off like that. You need _rest_, idiot."

"Yeah." I felt exhausted again. "I need a bath." I must have really looked like hell after running around all day, having some of my wounds reopen and bleed, having marks left by Dieter. That's all in addition to what Ian did, mind you.

"Sit down," Levi commanded, and he walked off into the bathroom.

"Just what the doctor ordered," I said, looking at the hot bubble bath. Levi grunted in response, sitting me down on the edge of the tub and starting to undress me. "I'm feeling deja vu, I think."

"You being a dumb brat and me taking care of it? Sounds familiar." He sounded pissed, but something told me that he was happy to see me again.

"Corporal, did you think I wasn't going to come back?"

He took a few moments to answer. I slid into the tub and watched him fold my clothes. "I figured you wanted a little time alone, but it's been fucking _hours_. I thought you got kidnapped again."

I laughed. "I'm not _that_ easy. Could I have some credit?"

Levi scoffed. "You have to _earn _that, you little shit."

"I'll definitely prove myself to you," I replied seriously.

"Yeah." He started to scrub me with a washcloth, and at first I tensed up, but there wasn't anything sexual about the touch, and I started to relax.

"You'd make a good dad, you know?"

"That's fucking gross. Don't say shit like that." He pulled one of my legs up out of the water.

"Huh? Don't you like kids?"

"I don't care about that. But don't allude to me being your father. We had sex once, didn't we?"

I laughed. "I know. But it's getting to be like that. You taking care of me all the time."

He dropped my leg unceremoniously back into the water. "You keep fucking yapping, you can just do this shit yourself."

"No, no. That's fine. Please continue." I don't think my body would have even moved out of the way of a train in that moment.

"Hm." He started to wash my other leg when we heard a knock on the front door. Levi looked at his watch and muttered something under his breath before going to answer it.

I heard the door open and Levi said flatly, "What?"

"Your check."

"Great. Bye."

"Levi, we need to talk."

"I don't think so."

"_Levi_. I'm not asking as your friend, but commanding as your superior."

There was a pause, and then I heard footsteps and the door closing.

"I'm busy," Levi said as he appeared in the doorway of the bathroom.

"It shouldn't take long." Levi sat back on the edge of the tub and Commander Erwin stepped inside.

I sank deeper into the water as red rose to fill my cheeks. "Evening, sir."

Erwin sighed and facepalmed as Levi started to wash my arms. "Levi, you're making my point before I've even said anything."

"Which would be?"

"That you cannot have a teenager hanging around. It's inappropriate."

"How exactly?" I had to resist the urge to laugh. Levi was being as unemotional as ever, and it was getting a rise out of Erwin.

"Didn't it occur to you that it might be a little _not okay_ to bathe him?"

"Parents bathe their children, right?" I was going to start laughing, but Levi's fingers threaded through my hair and I lost the ability to form words.

"When they're young children, sure. Also, Eren is too old to be your child."

"Is he? Brats his age are already having children. Who's to say that I didn't?"

Erwin sighed, crossing his arms. "You're ridiculous. You really are."

"Does that mean we're done here?"

"No, Levi. You _can't_ have him on as an apprentice. It's a liability. No offense, Eren."

"None taken, sir," I replied.

"Erwin, I'm keeping him," Levi said with a sense of finality.

"He's not a _dog_, Levi. You can't just decide to keep him."

"Of course I can. Right, Eren?" I barked in response.

"Levi. It's dangerous. He's not legally old enough to accompany you. There are lots of reasons."

"Eren can take care of himself."

"Eren, what's under the gauze on your cheek? How did you get hurt?"

I had no idea how to answer.

"Ian Dietrich," Levi interjected.

"You let a _kid_ get close enough to an _international criminal_ for _that _to happen? You're lucky that it isn't worse!"

"It's_ much_ worse, Erwin," Levi said coolly. "You don't have any idea."

Erwin looked pale. "Levi, please. This can't happen again. Don't you care about what happens to him?"

"Of course I fucking care!" Levi's voice echoed off of the tiled walls and I sank deeper into the warm water, hoping to disappear. "You don't have any clue what's going on, Erwin, so just trust that he _needs_ to be with me right now."

"What he _needs_ is to be checked out at a hospital, evaluated by a psychiatrist, and to be taken care of by his parents. Let me take him home."

"I'm the closest thing he has to a parent, Erwin. I'm the only one who gives a damn what happens to him."

Erwin sighed again. "Levi, how about we talk about this out there and let Eren finish up?"

Levi turned his cold glare on me, willing me to decline, but instead I said, "Go ahead, Corporal. I'll be fine alone." If they were going to talk about me like I wasn't there, they might as well do it somewhere else.

* * *

Levi came back in after a long time. Long enough that I fell asleep and woke up in freezing water.

"Stupid brat. You let the water get cold."

I yawned, "It's your fault, isn't it? You shouldn't have taken so long." I smiled, just messing around. He didn't seem to be in the mood, though. Maybe that was to be expected. Was he really ever?

"Corporal? What is it?"

"Get dressed," he said quietly, setting a canvas bag down beside me. I recognized it as one I'd gotten for free when visiting a store's grand opening.

I sloshed the water around as I sat up and reached for it. "Is this mine? Where did you get this?" I started pulling stuff out.

"It's...what's left."

"What's...left?" I stopped and stared up at him. "What does that mean?"

"The place you were staying...most of it burned down around three in the morning. So, I went and got what was still there."

I looked down. I didn't have lots of stuff, but it was still _mine_. A sweatshirt, a couple pairs of underwear, and a pair of jeans. "That's it?" I was trying not to be too sad about it. It was just stuff, but I felt overwhelmingly sad. The only things I had left were here.

"Those are all the clothes that were still wearable. I also found a book, some money...a few other things. But it looks like I wasn't the first person to rummage through there. It seems that some of the other...undesirables staying there went looking for things to salvage."

I nodded. "I kept most of my cash in the back of the fridge. Junkies like to break into other people's rooms. They never thought to look in there."

Levi shook his head. "The fridge and microwave were not there."

"Someone boosted them, huh?" I sighed. "I guess that's fine. I can make it with this, for now."

"Look, Eren..." I blushed. Had he ever called me by my first name before? He sighed. "Just get ready for bed." I stood up and he wrapped a towel around me.

"Thank you, Corporal."

* * *

"Eren? Are you all right?"

"Y-yeah. I'm all right." I felt a little sick. I was shivering and sweating and the dark room was suffocating.

Levi came in and turned the light on, thankfully. I sucked in a deep breath and the air tasted sweet. "Do you need anything?"

"Come sit with me?" I sounded pitiful. Levi sat next to me on the bed and took one of my hands.

"What happened?" He handed me a bottle of water he kept on the nightstand.

"Had a nightmare," I stammered, fumbling to get the bottle open, but my hands were shaking pretty bad.

He took it from my hands. "Let me."

"L-Levi," I whimpered.

He looked at me and there was _emotion_ on his face. _Sadness_. It broke my heart. He put the bottle aside and wrapped his arms around me. "It's okay. You're fine. I'm here."

I cried in his arms until I fell asleep.

**All the feels. Please review!**


	8. And Away We Go

**Wow, you guys. I really felt the love on the last chapter! I'm really glad that you guys liked it! I tried to respond to everyone's review, so please don't be sad if I didn't. I appreciate every word you guys have to say, good or bad or whatever. So, don't stop giving your input! That goes for every author out there. People love to get praised!**

**I have to apologize because last chapter was supposed to be about three times as long, but I got backed up on homework and I just couldn't get it all the way done. So, I'm trying to reward you this week. This chapter is BOTH EARLY AND ENORMOUS. So you fuckers had better be grateful.**

**I'll still try to update with the next chapter as scheduled on Sunday!**

**The Hunters**

**Chapter Seven - ****And Away We Go!**

"Get up. We're going to the store."

I groaned with my face in the pillows. "Hmrenahsd."

"Speak a language I can understand, brat."

"Don't wanna get up," I repeated, although it was only slightly less intelligible than before.

Levi sighed impatiently. "At least get dressed so we can have lunch."

"M'not hungry."

"The hell you aren't. Come on." Levi walked over and ripped the covers off of the bed. I was only wearing underwear, so it was suddenly freezing. Normally, I would have been pissed, but I just felt kind of sad and pathetic.

I curled up into a ball, and if I could have burrowed into the mattress, I would have. "No. _No._ I don't wanna do anything."

"Do you _always_ wake up this late? Don't be annoying," Levi said, jabbing me in the ribs.

I howled in pain and looked up at him with watery eyes. "Don't be an asshole," I whined. "I only sleep in when _everything is awful_."

He stared at me for a second, then averted his eyes crossed his arms. "Are you going to be like this all day?"

"I...don't know. It comes and goes," I muttered. "Can't you just let me be miserable?"

He walked away and I heard the door slam a few seconds later.

* * *

I felt like I had only two options. One, lie on the bed for the rest of my life and die there. Two, get up and find a bottle of pills, take them all, and die now. Both thoughts had very seriously crossed my mind for long enough that I decided to just choose one. Option one appealed to my laziness, but there was the chance of Levi returning and making sure I stayed alive, that bastard. Option two required _movement_ which I _loathed with every fiber of my being_, but if Levi stayed out much longer, I might actually succeed.

I finally decided to drag myself out of bed and into the bathroom. Option two seemed much more efficient, since I'd been lying in bed for three hours and was no closer to death than I'd been at noon when Levi woke me up. I thought of where Levi might have something, _anything_ stashed (Aspirin, sleeping pills, I didn't care).

I didn't expect him to be gone for as long as three hours, but I also didn't care (at least until he ruined my whole dying plan). I don't know if he had a sixth sense, or great timing, but he always ruined all of my plans. I hadn't showered and I was still in the clothes I slept in, (which were the clothes I'd been wearing since Tuesday, at Ian's house, two days ago if you've been counting), but Levi decided that "we're going to the motherfucking store." That was fine, because if he didn't drag me out, I might have seriously committed suicide. I'm honestly surprised he left me alone at all.

* * *

"I want to talk to you."

"Okay."

Levi didn't look at me. For some reason, conversations in the car were always painful and serious. "Why the hell did you run away yesterday?"

"At the police station?"

"Yes."

I looked out the open window, listening to the sound of the wind rushing by. "I was afraid," I said finally.

"Of what? Ian was in custody. He couldn't hurt you anymore."

"I was afraid of _you_."

"What? You're an idiot."

"Am I? I don't know you, or anything about you. It's scary seeing what you're capable of. Wondering if you would ever turn on me."

Levi scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Don't you realize that I did that because—ugh, just—I would never hurt you."

"Can't you look at it from where I am? My entire life I've had to deal with men I don't know—men who have quick tempers and sick thoughts and no control over their desires. And of all things, I had to deal with Ian, who likes to pretend to play nice and gets off on causing pain. He's the kind of guy that would ask you in the sweetest voice how your wife and kids are doing while ripping the heart out of your chest."

Levi didn't say anything.

I furrowed my brow. He never says anything, and when he _does,_ it's vague and makes no sense to me. "Corporal, do you understand that you're incredibly abrasive? Even when you're being nice. And right now, I need someone to be nice the way that normal people are."

"You talk too much. I mean, shit, you're frustrating."

I sighed. "I'm just saying—you've been nothing but good to me, and until I can learn how to trust you, it doesn't really mean anything. So, don't take it all personally or anything, okay?"

Things were silent for a long time before Levi said, "I couldn't take it. That he'd done all those things to you. And the only way to protect you is to keep it to ourselves. But if we don't take it to the police, then he escapes punishment. And it drove me insane. Do you get that?"

"Yes—somewhat."

"Tch. Are you fucking stupid?"

"I understand what you said. I just don't understand why I matter to you."

"Because you remind me of me—and the world doesn't need more of that."

* * *

"Here." Levi pushed a wad of cash into the front pocket of my jeans. "Go pick out some clothes, and don't take forever. Don't have all fucking day," he muttered as he sauntered away from me.

I made a face and walked over to the guys' clothing section. I wasn't sure yet if I wanted to buy clothing for Arizona or Minnesota. But the Corporal and I hadn't discussed anything in regards to what was going to happen with us (whatever kind of relationship "us" was), and I assumed that he was going to go after his next bounty soon. He hadn't said anything about me coming with him, but he'd gotten into a fight with the Commander about keeping me. Did that mean he was assuming that I was just going to stay with him? I didn't want to assume anything. I could imagine him standing there with that stupid face. "Did you think you could come? Stupid brat. I can't have you hanging around me all the time."

That man is endlessly aggravating.

I decided to start just picking out socks and underwear. At the very least, I needed that stuff no matter where I was going. Dieter needed an answer very soon, and I sure as hell wasn't going to stick around here by myself anymore. If I wasn't going to Minnesota or staying with Levi, then I was going to take a bus to anywhere else in the world.

"Eren, we need to stop running into each other all the time."

I jumped about a mile out of my shoes, startled. I turned around, and when I saw who it was, I smiled as genuinely as I could, but I honestly wasn't really feeling it. "Hi, Dieter. I guess it's a small world."

"It's fine, since I get to see you. How are you feeling today?"

I shrugged. "The same as usual."

Dieter frowned. "I don't like the sound of that."

"It's fine."

He was obviously not satisfied, but dropped the subject, thankfully. "What are you shopping for?"

I held up a pack of underwear. "Clothes. I just lost all my stuff in a fire, so..."

He cringed. "Oh, man, I'm sorry. Do you need anything? Money?"

"No, no, I'm okay. Thanks, though."

Dieter nodded, "Of course, Eren. Do you want some company, at least?"

"That'd be nice, actually."

* * *

"I think you'd look nice in this," Dieter said, holding up a plain, black button down shirt with long sleeves and pockets on both sides.

"I'll try it on." I was already holding a few things to try. He laid it on top of my pile and we walked over to the fitting rooms, passing the women's clothing along the way.

"Hey, can I grab you one more thing to try on?"

I shrugged. "Sure. I'll meet you over there."

I was trying on my third outfit when I heard Dieter call out my name.

"In here," I said, opening the door to the changing stall. I was wearing the black shirt he picked with some dark blue jeans.

He smiled. "That looks good."

"Yeah," I replied, looking down at it. "I really like this one."

"Can I come in with you?" I nodded, and closed the door behind both of us.

"What did you bring for me?" I was suspicious; he was holding it behind his back.

"You have to promise me that you'll try it. Just promise."

"I...I guess..."

"All right. Close your eyes. I want to put it on you."

"Put it...Dieter?"

He laughed. "Just close your eyes." I did. He began to unbutton my shirt and I started on my pants. "How did the fire happen?"

"Someone fell asleep with a lit cigarette, or something, I think." I stepped out of my pants and let him slide the shirt off of my shoulders.

"And the whole place just burned down? Lift your arms up."

I put my arms up above my head and grimaced. My sides were sore. "I think it was a combination of things, but yeah." One of his hands grazed my bare skin and I shivered and tensed up.

Smooth fabric slipped down my body. I started to open my eyes. "Dieter, is this a dress?"

He laughed, "Don't look yet! Just trust me."

"Easier said than done," I said, only half-jokingly, closing my eyes again. I put my arms through something and felt it tighten around my midsection. "Are you almost finished?"

"One second." He pushed me so that I faced the mirror. "Okay, you can look."

I opened my eyes nervously. "Wha...what is this?"

Dieter chuckled, and his face was red. "I saw it, and I _had_ to see you wearing it. What do you think?"

It was a sage green dress, embroidered with a small floral design in a color just a touch darker than the dress. It went down to about my knees. It had a brown corset that looked like leather, which started right above my hips and came up to the bottom of the bust I couldn't fill out. It had straps that went up over my shoulders and buckled tightly around me instead of tied. The top of the dress had a straight neckline with a triangular cut in the middle, where some cream-colored fabric with a square neckline and scalloped edges peeked out from behind. It was sort of a built-in bra, so it gave the illusion that I had something there. The sleeves were also cream-colored, off-the-shoulder, short, and a little puffy (tastefully, not like a freaking Disney princess).

I turned to see myself from the side. "I..." I blushed. "I kind of like it."

He put a hand on my hip and bit his lip. "You don't know how much I'd like to take you out of that dress."

Everything felt really warm all of a sudden, and my mouth was really dry. My whole body tensed up. "I think maybe you should stand out there while I take it off." I licked my lips, but it didn't help.

"Y-yeah. Uh, you just get changed and I'll be out there."

* * *

Dieter took the dress from me while I went to look at sneakers. All I had were flip-flops, and I don't really love those. I settled on just a pair of plain black canvas sneakers and the same pair in white. There was no sense in being extra fancy.

"Is there anything else you need?"

"I don't think so," I said, checking what I had. "Underwear, socks, undershirts, jeans, shorts—"

"Very short shorts," Dieter blushed. I'd told him in the fitting room that I was out of the dress and he could come back, but I was trying on some shorts that apparently he couldn't handle.

If you were wondering, _yes,_ I do shave my legs, and I like to get shorts from the girls' section because the guys ones are annoyingly baggy.

"An assortment of shirts," I continued, laughing, "with long and short and no sleeves."

"Need a sweatshirt? A jacket?"

"I have a sweatshirt still."

"It's cold in Minnesota, and it snows a lot."

I got nervous. I wasn't ready to answer him about that yet.

"O-oh, is it?"

"Eren, it's fine. You don't have to come live with me. I just thought...I mean, where else are you going to go? And I—I feel really strongly about you."

"D-Dieter, don't." I couldn't breathe. If he said he loved me, I would die.

"I'm not—I'm not going as far as to say I love you or anything—but I like you, and I care about you _a lot_. I was just hoping—maybe you at least feel a _little_ something when you're with me?"

I didn't know what to say. I'd never really felt that way about anyone. "I—I don't really know anything about feelings, or whatever. B-but, if you're asking if I'll move in with you, then—then I guess I will."

Dieter blinked. "You will? You mean that?"

I nodded. My whole head felt hot. It didn't feel right, but I didn't have any other options. I didn't want to be in Arizona anymore, I didn't want to sell myself anymore—I wanted a new life, and this was my only chance. "Yeah. Let's...let's move to Minnesota together."

"You'll definitely need a coat."

"Yeah."

There was a slight pause, and then I started to laugh. And after a second, so did Dieter, and it felt really good. Like I was laughing my pain away.

"What are you doing?" I looked over to see Levi, standing a few steps away with his arms crossed.

"There you are, Corporal," I said, still laughing, trying to calm down. "I'm just checking if there's anything else I need." I looked over at Dieter, but he wasn't laughing anymore. He looked sick.

"Who is this?" Levi looked Dieter up and down. Suddenly, I felt a tension in the air.

"This is Dieter," I said, in the way someone says the sky is blue. Like, duh.

"Hm."

I turned back to Dieter, who was looking at the floor. "Dieter, this is—"

Oh,_ shit._

I swallowed hard. "This is..." My voice suddenly got weak.

Dieter looked up and smiled brightly, extending his hand out. "You must be the Corporal. Eren talks about you all the time."

I felt a fresh rush of guilt. Levi looked at me questioningly as he shook Dieter's hand. "Does he, now?" He wiped his hand on his chest before putting it back into his pocket, as if Dieter were diseased. "You should spend less time talking, Jaeger, and more time doing what you're supposed to do." He turned and started to walk away. "Go pay so that we can leave."

I stood there for a few moments with Dieter, watching Levi walk away.

"I think I understand, now." I didn't like the way Dieter's voice sounded.

I stepped closer to him, reaching my arms out. "Dieter, wait."

He stepped back. "No, it's fine. I get it, now. You can't love me while you're loving _him, _right?" The way he spat out 'him,' like a curse word, made me cringe. "Don't worry about it. He'll get angry, right? So go ahead and pay."

I looked at him for a long moment. "What are you waiting for, Eren?" He turned his face to the floor and I couldn't tell if he was crying, or if he was royally pissed. "He's waiting for you."

"Dieter, I...I'm sorry."

"Yeah."

I didn't want to, but I left him standing there.

* * *

Levi didn't speak to me the entire ride home, despite my attempts at conversation. Every word that came out of my mouth earned me a glare.

"Look," I said finally as we entered his suite, "I don't know what I did wrong, but—hmpf!"

Levi pushed me against the wall, hard, and kissed me roughly. I dropped the bags I was holding to push him away. "What are you doing? I'm trying to talk to you."

"I'm not interested in talking," he replied flatly, storming away toward the bedroom.

"I gathered that," I grumbled. "What's going on?"

"Who was that guy?" Levi sat on the bed, pushing his boots off with his feet and deliberately not looking at me.

"Dieter? He's my friend."

"I thought you didn't _have_ friends."

"Well—that's true, I don't. I met Dieter at the...at the party."

For a second, I thought that Levi was going to deck me. Right in the face. "You have fucking issues! Who the fuck makes friends at a pet party? Don't you see anything wrong with that?"

"No!" I honestly _didn't_ see anything wrong with that. Dieter was the _one good thing_ that came out of my experience with Ian.

"Do you know where pets come from? Ian kidnapped you, but that's _rare_, because it's risky. Are you understanding yet?"

"No, I'm not." My head hurt, and I didn't feel like being yelled at.

"You really are an idiot. Most people become pets when they have debts to pay. Junkies who don't have money, things like that. _Not_ good, innocent people. Do you have any idea what he was before he was there?" He shot up off of the bed, and I took a step back from him, feeling skittish.

We'd talked briefly about his life, but not the events between him graduating high school and becoming a pet. "Not exactly," I answered nervously.

"And you were just going to fly across the country, alone, with someone you don't know?"

"Wait—how did you know that?"

Levi looked pissed. "I was keeping an eye on you. I noticed you two together, so I investigated. I don't need you getting taken again."

I gaped incredulously. "You were spying on me? For how long?"

"Holy fuck, you're an immature brat." He rolled his eyes and sat back down on the bed. "All you think about is yourself."

"You don't look like much from my point of view," I spat.

Levi glared at me. "I saw you choosing shoes, so I decided to ask if you were almost ready to leave, when that guy showed up. So I eavesdropped. Do you feel better, now?"

"Why is it even your business? Why do you care where I go or who I fuck?"

His eyes narrowed, and in one swift movement, he stood up and threw me onto the bed. It took my breath away, and he hovered above me, straddling my hips. "Because I'm fucking _in love _with you."

Shit.

Oh, shit.

"No. No way." I pushed up on his chest, but he grabbed my shoulders and pinned me to the bed.

"I'm going to make you love me."

My heart started racing. He said it so seriously that I blushed. "You...Corporal..."

He leaned in close to my ear and said lowly, "What is it?" His breath was hot, and his tongue traced the outer shell of my ear. I felt entirely too warm.

"You're hurting me," I said bluntly.

He looked at me sincerely for a moment, then sneered, pushing his knee into my crotch and rubbing it. "I don't know if I should believe you."

"You're insane." I pinched one of his arms hard enough to leave a mark, but he didn't stop. He started licking and kissing at my neck. I started to panic, and pushed at his shoulders again. "Get off." My heart started to beat faster and faster, and I felt the trembling rattle up through my body, like I was just going to shake into pieces, my bones falling away one by one.

I have a lot of fight in me. The problem was, I wasn't very strong, and the Corporal _was._ I had all of the technique and none of the strength. Levi started to pull my shorts off and I kicked him as hard as I could. My foot connected with his stomach. "I'm not kidding! Get off!" I punched him square in the jaw, and he seemed to get the message, finally. He stood up and glowered at me.

And then he looked at me, scared and shivering, and his face softened again. "I'm sorry. I got carried away."

"Damn right," I grumbled, pushing myself up off the bed. I was royally freaking out, and the problem wasn't even that I thought Levi might rape me. "I need some fucking air."

"Eren, wait—"

I was scared because he was touching me and I didn't even get a little bit excited by it.

"Fuck you."

* * *

I sat on the curb in front of the hotel, praying to hear a voice on the other side of the phone call, even though I didn't deserve the time of day.

"Eren?" He sounded about at happy as anyone would expect.

"Dieter," I sniffed, trying to hide the fact that I'd started fucking crying.

"Eren? Are you all right?" He didn't sound as concerned as he might have normally, but it was still kinder than it'd been a second before.

"Y-yeah. I just—I think I might do something stupid. I mean, I don't think I can be alone with my thoughts. Can we just talk for a little?"

"I'm coming to get you."

"Wait, Dieter—" He hung up before I could protest.

* * *

I fidgeted uncomfortably in the passenger seat of Dieter's car. He didn't look at me at all since he'd picked me up, two hours ago. It was starting to get darker, and cooler, and we'd started driving into the forest. I had forgotten what it was like to see so many trees.

"What happened?" He said it so quietly that I scarcely heard it.

I didn't think he'd been too keen on hearing me explain what had happened with Levi, so I didn't mention it. "I don't know. I've just been freaking out all day."

Dieter sighed. "Do you know anything about ecstasy, Eren?"

"No. I just trusted you and took it."

"I...well, it makes everything feel really great, right? But it depletes your serotonin. And it can take _days_ to feel better. Depression, anxiety, paranoia, suicidal thoughts, hallucinations, exhaustion, headaches...that's not even half of it."

"That sounds about right." I turned my head and looked at him. "If you knew all of that would happen, why the hell would you let me take it?"

"Because a few days of that is better than PTSD, right?"

"What are you talking about?"

"How much of that party do you remember?"

"It depends. Some of it's extremely vivid. Some of it's fuzzy and confusing."

"Because I gave you drugs. Imagine if you could remember all of it. I don't think you'd be so held together."

"What makes you think I'm held together right now?"

Dieter looked at me for a moment, then pulled off the road into the forest and shut the car off. "Tell me what's been happening."

I hugged myself, suddenly feeling exposed. "I keep having flashbacks. Nightmares. I yo-yo between feeling absolutely nothing and feeling like everything is completely hopeless. Sometimes, it gets into my head that suicide is a seriously good idea. Everything is scary, _everything_. I feel like I can't relax. I just—I don't know what to do with myself anymore."

Dieter leaned over and took my hand. "It's okay."

"No, it's not." My chest felt tight again. "I don't feel like I'll ever be okay again."

He squeezed my hand, then let go. "Wait one second." He got out of the car and rummaged around the trunk. When he returned, he told me to come sit in the back with him. He sat against the door, with his legs stretched out over the entire seat, and I sat in his lap, leaning on his chest. He wrapped a blanket around my shoulders, and stroked my hair gently while I sobbed uncontrollably.

* * *

I finally calmed down and shifted my body, trying to snuggle more comfortably against his chest. My right thigh brushed up against his crotch and I heard his breath hitch. "Dieter..." I sat up so that my knees were around his hips and my hands were on his shoulder, but our bodies weren't touching. "You're hard?"

He was blushing. "Well, y-yeah." It came out a little breathy, and he cleared his throat. "Is that bad?"

"We weren't even doing anything."

"It's just that you were so close, and it was comfortable, and I started to think about things...I'm sorry."

I blushed. "How does anyone get excited from just that?"

"I don't know! I just like the way your body feels against mine. I like holding you. I like that your hips are a little feminine. I like how soft and supple your skin is. I like that you have a tiny bit of pudge in your midsection."

"Those are all the things I _hate,_ you idiot." I averted my eyes, and felt my pulse speed up. "Do you...want to?"

"Do you?"

I leaned forward and kissed him softly, chastely. He put one hand on my hip and the other around my neck. I pulled away. "I don't like that."

"What is it?"

"My neck. It hurts." Not to mention that Ian was fucking obsessed with it.

"It's easily the most beautiful part of your body." He tilted my head up and licked my Adam's apple.

"Please, don't." He got the hint. Both of his hands found my hips and pulled me closer, so that his erection was pressed against my crotch. I grabbed a fistful of his shirt nervously, and the blanket fell off of my shoulders. "I'm scared."

"Let's just kiss, okay?" I nodded, and pressed my lips against his. At first, I wouldn't open my mouth, but as I started to relax, I let my lips part and he slid his tongue against mine. We kissed like that for a while, until my lips started to feel raw and bruised. "Why haven't you taken those piercings out?" Dieter panted when we finally separated. I shrugged. "Don't they remind you of Ian?"

"Yes." To be honest, I don't know why I hadn't removed them. Not that I'd made a conscious decision to keep them, either.

"Do you like them?"

"I don't know. I just haven't done anything about them."

"I think they mar you."

"What?"

"I think you're perfect, except for those piercings." He slid my shirt up, exposing my belly. "But it's your decision."

"I don't know," I said again. They were still pretty tender, and I wasn't exactly eager to struggle with pulling them out if it was going to be painful. "Tell me what else you like about me."

"I like the way your hair feels when I comb it with my fingers. I like how your body is almost completely hairless." Dieter pushed my shirt up more, and I instinctively grabbed his arms to stop him. "Is this not okay?"

"No, it's...it's fine." I took my hands away and let him pull my shirt off. "Yours too," I muttered, pulling up on the fabric. He lifted his arms so that I could take it off of him, and we sat chest to chest again. The feeling of his skin on mine was both unsettling and comforting.

He ran his fingers up and down my back. "Are you okay?"

"No," I answered honestly. "I feel pain everywhere."

"Do you want to stop?"

"No." I was really sure that if I just managed to get through it, then I'd get over it all and get back to normal. I kissed him again, and he squeezed my ass.

"I need more than just kissing, Eren." He reached for my pants and I backed up. There was no way I was dropping my pants, no way in hell.

"Just relax," I said, unbuttoning his pants.

"I don't have any protection," he said.

"It's fine." I pulled the fabric down just enough to let his manhood free. I've said it before, that I'm no good at oral at all, but I tried really hard to please him. Apparently, it worked. Before long, he was bucking his hips, threatening to choke me, and moaning. I took him deep into my throat, and shortly after that he came with a groan. I sat up, swallowing what he'd left in my mouth, when we heard a knock on the window. I turned, only to be blinded by a flashlight. I crawled over to the front of the car and rolled the window down (manually; it was an older car).

"Evening, officer," I said, throwing the discarded blanket toward Dieter so that he could cover up.

"You kids should move along." We weren't in trouble, we were just getting scolded. "Find another place to do that sort of thing."

"Yes, sir. Sorry, sir."

He gave me another look. "Is everything okay here?" I'm sure it looked a little suspicious. Dieter didn't look as old as he was; he could probably pass for seventeen or eighteen—but I definitely could only pass for sixteen at the most, and with all my cuts and bruises, well—if I were him, looking at this, I would have started thinking bad things too.

"We're fine. Thank you, sir. Have a good night." I started to roll the window back up, and I saw the officer give me another good look before walking away.

I sighed in relief. Dieter handed me my shirt and crawled back up to the front seat. "Close call, huh?" he said.

"Yeah." I put my shirt back on and grabbed the blanket before buckling myself back into the passenger seat.

Dieter started the car and pulled back up onto the road, passing the police car as we headed back toward Phoenix. "Are you going to be all right? I didn't reciprocate."

"Yeah, I'm fine." I wrapped the blanket around myself, feeling a little guilty. "Was it...was it okay?"

Dieter laughed a little. "Uh, yeah, it was really nice. You didn't have to do that."

I shrugged. "That sort of thing doesn't bother me."

"I feel bad though, that I didn't do anything for you. And it'll take two hours to get into the city."

"It's fine." I really didn't feel like telling him that I didn't get hard during that entire time. I was a little surprised that he hadn't already noticed.

He glanced at me. "Are you sure? I won't look, if you want to touch yourself."

I grumbled, "I said it was fine, didn't I?"

"I don't mind finding another place to stop for a little, if you want me to do it."

"Dieter, don't fucking bother—shit, don't you let anything go?"

He was obviously taken aback by my outburst. "Eren, what's wrong?"

I growled. "My dick's wrong, okay? I can't fucking get it up! Just leave me alone!" I wiped wetness away from my eyes with my arm. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I like you. I like doing this with you. So why can't I—fuck, I'm really upset about it."

He didn't look at me. "It's okay if what we just did wasn't doing it for you. It was pretty one-sided, in my favor. Do you want to just let me try?"

I felt my face heat up. "Sure."

* * *

We pulled off the road again, about an hour later, when we were back in the desert (and sure that the cop from Bradshaw City hadn't been following us).

"Push your seat all the way back, and recline it." I nodded, doing as I was told. Dieter crawled over the gear shift and onto me. "Does it scare you? To close your eyes?" I nodded again. "Okay, then you don't have to. Just relax." He started to undo my shorts, and the first thing I did was tense up. He laughed. "Relax, Eren."

"Easier said than done," I said weakly. I took a deep breath as I lifted my butt up so that he could pull my shorts and underwear off. "Gentle," I whispered as he hooked my legs over his shoulders. He nodded, then took my cock in his hand, pushing it up against my stomach and stroking it. It was a strange sensation—it felt good, and at the same time, it didn't. He licked experimentally at my entrance and I whimpered. He took that as an invitation to push his tongue inside me a little, and pressed the thumb of his free hand against my perineum. Still, I knew that I should feel something, but my body wasn't reacting. I didn't buck my hips, I didn't get hard, there wasn't any precum—but I could feel emotion in my chest, I could feel my heart rate increase, I could feel it getting harder to breathe.

Dieter stopped to admire what he'd done to my lower regions. "_Fuck_," he whispered, "you have the _prettiest _little boy cunt."

I pushed his shoulder into the dashboard with my foot, _hard_. "Was that supposed to be sexy? Because it's not. It's fucking disgusting."

He laughed lowly, a frightening sound very much like I'd heard come from Ian. "You really don't understand how beautiful you are." He pressed the tip of his finger against my asshole. "It looks really gorgeous when it's wet like this."

I couldn't get enough air into my lungs, but it was a different feeling altogether. "I think we're done here." I sat up so that Dieter couldn't access that part of my body. My heart threatened to beat out of my chest. I wanted to cry. I was _definitely_ freaking out. "I want to go home."

Dieter's expression changed to apologetic. "I'm sorry, I couldn't control myself—I didn't mean to scare you."

"Dieter, I want to go home," I repeated.

He bit his lip. "It really didn't do anything for you?"

"No, it's not working."

"Okay." He climbed back over to the driver's seat and I hurriedly pulled my pants back up. I heard him take a few deep breaths before turning the car on. I probably turned him on a little, and normally I would have done something about it, but I was much less than interested in doing _anything_ with Dieter for the rest of the night.

* * *

As we neared the suites, I could tell that Dieter was trying to say something, and didn't know how. "Just spit it out," I said quietly. "What is it?"

He paused for another moment. "My offer still stands, you know. If you want to come with me, you can. And even if you don't want to come now, if you ever change your mind—you're always welcome, Eren, always."

I didn't look at him. "Thanks. But I think I have a lot of things to sort out, first."

"I understand." He paused again. "Is he going to take care of you? I just...can't stand the thought of you being alone."

"I'll be fine—I'm not sure what's going to happen, but I know that I'll figure it out. And if I need help, I'll come to you. I promise."

Dieter nodded. "You know—he'll never love you like I love you."

I swallowed hard. "I don't believe in love—I don't believe that it's a real thing."

"Don't you love the Corporal?"

I frowned. "I don't know what I feel. But I know it's not love."

He looked sad. "I want to change your mind. About love. I want to show you what it's like."

"You've told me before." We pulled into the parking lot, but I didn't make a move to exit the car. "Look, you've been really good to me," I started softly, "and I can't tell you what that means to me."

"I did it because that's what I wanted to do. You don't have to thank me." He took my hand in his. "Before you go, I have something for you. Don't open it yet, okay?" He reached behind his seat and handed me a blue box. I wondered what was in it—it was a long rectangle, about the size of my torso, and only about two inches thick.

I rubbed my arm nervously, hugging the box to my chest, then planted a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you...and, uh, don't forget to call me when you get to Minnesota."

He nodded. "Don't forget to call me when you're ready to join me there."

* * *

Levi's door was unlocked and the only light came from the television, which played quietly in the living room. It was really strange to me, but he always left his car open, so why would his apartment be any different? I saw him lying on the couch, and was trying to be quiet, trying not to disturb him.

"Can't you just get some air for fifteen minutes, like the rest of the world? Why do you always disappear for hours?" His voice was raspy and low, like he'd either been sleeping or crying.

My vote was sleeping. I don't think the Corporal is physically capable of crying.

"You disappeared for hours this morning." I dropped Dieter's gift on the dining table.

"Not my fault. I went out to smoke a cigarette and Erwin called me in. I didn't run off with some guy doing whatever for however long. You know, I can see the parking lot from here."

I plopped myself beside him on the couch. "I didn't fuck him, if that's what you're asking."

He prodded my leg with one of his feet. "I'm sorry for what I did."

"I know." I pulled on the top of his sock. "I want to trust you. Can you understand that it's difficult for me?"

"Of course I understand, brat—do you think I trust people easily? That why it makes me nervous when you leave." I didn't respond. We watched the news quietly for a while. "Come here." I lay gingerly on top of him and he put an arm around me, his hand resting on my waist. "This morning, when I went out, Erwin called me in."

"Yeah, you told me." I dreaded what came next.

He squeezed my waist a little and I winced in pain. "I got my new assignment. I leave for New Mexico first thing in the morning."

I knew it. I fucking knew it. "You wanna fuck before you go? Or have you got another whore lined up already?" I felt sick.

"Shut up." It wasn't loud, but it sounded legitimately irritated. "I want to make a deal with you."

"A deal?" I lifted my head up to look at him, but he was facing away from me. "What do you want?"

He said it quietly. "Come with me. In exchange, I'll take care of you."

I scoffed. "You want me to be your own personal slut? What makes you think I want to do that?"

"Maybe you don't want to." Levi turned his head to face me, but his eyes were still somewhere else. "But, do you have any other options? Where are you going to go? You don't have any money, and you don't have anywhere to do business. You're too young to do anything on your own, at least anywhere reputable. Come with me, and you won't have to worry about money ever again."

All of those things were true. But I was still pissed that he was asking me like this. If he really loved me, couldn't he just ask me if I wanted to come? Or was it because he thought I'd say no?

"I don't want your fucking money," I spat, poking him hard in the stomach. "But, if you're that hard up for me, I'll do it on one condition."

"Name it," he said immediately, without hesitation.

I continued warily. "You're the best hunter there is, right? You know how to find people?"

He sneered smugly. "For the right price, I can find Amelia Earhart."

I didn't doubt it. I made up my mind. "All right. I'll do any crazy, sick, kinky shit you like. All you have to do is find my sister."

He looked at me, and there was fire behind those cold eyes. "Deal."


End file.
